Tribe issue 18 by Mark Doyle

2009

TRIBE MAGAZINE ISSUE 18

EDITOR IN CHIEF Mark Doyle mark@tribemagazine.org SENIOR CORRESPONDENT Helen Moore helen@tribemagazine.org MARKETING AND PR Steve Clement-‐Large steve@tribemagazine.org

Paton, Makoto Tojiki, Tilly Craig, Teresa Armstrong, Selena Ruth Bratt, Bregje Horsten COVER Photography: Mark Doyle MUA: Karen Mills Model: Debbie Smitham Head dress: AlienFox Designs INSIDE COVER Natalie Wetzel

REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Glyn Davies, Sarah Ahmad, Emily Pickthall

BACK COVER & CONTENTS PAGE Tilly Craig

THANKS TO: Natalie Wetzel, Karen Mills, Alien Fox Designs, Pablito Zago, Mau Mau, Sarah Lederman, Nick

A special thank you to all our volunteer interns.

Ar4sts have given permission for their work to be displayed in tribe magazine. No part of this publica4on may be reproduced without the permission of the copyright holder(s)

contact@tribemagazine.org SUBMIT WORK submit@tribemagazine.org ONLINE www.tribemagazine.org www.rebelmouse.com/Tribe twiSer.com/TribeZine pinterest.com/tribemagazine www.facebook.com/pages/Tribe-‐Magazine/ 296509067036606

tribe is published via Issuu online, and by The Word Machine, in Plymouth, UK If you would like to contribute art or ar]cles to tribe magazine, then please send us an outline of your ar]cle to our main contact email. If you would like to submit your artwork, then please send us up to 8 samples of your work to the submit email. We have a rolling submissions policy and accept work at all ]mes and throughout the year. Further details can be found on the contact sec]on of our main website. (C) 2013 tribe magazine

ISSN: 2050-‐2352 4

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EDITORIAL “I don't know what other people are doing -‐ I just know about me.” Theolonius Monk It’s easy as a creative to worry about what other people are doing. It’s also easy to talk about doing things but never actually do them. I know, I’ve been there myself; as a photographer, a writer and now an editor. We obsess about what is happening over there and that because something is happening over there it must be far more interesting than what you are currently doing. It rarely is I’ve found. I’ve finally kicked the habit of worrying about it. It’s a liberating feeling for sure. These past few months I have been making some pretty amazing connections online, with creatives and writers and editors that just get on with things. It’s inspiring to see their work, some of which is in this issue, others on the main tribe website. It may be an obvious thing to state, but great work doesn’t make itself and opportunity doesn’t often fall into your lap by chance. Like a piece of art, you have to create opportunity. With modern technology we can create amazing things on small budgets and share them globally. It’s mind blowing stuff. I’ve become a voracious networker -‐ not because I feel the compulsive need to make friends online, but because networking means I get to make connections and see work that is inspiring, captivating and stunning. And when I get to talk to the creators, they personify those qualities too. Great people make great things happen and they don’t look at problems or barriers. They go around the barriers, or they tear them down. They are not afraid to try something new, or work in a new way, or work with new people. They are not afraid of failure either. And that’s the most important thing for me -‐ the fearlessness. So, enjoy issue 18 of tribe and hopefully the work will inspire you as much as it has me. Mark Doyle Editor In Chief “Go your own way and eventually, people will catch up with you.” Theolonius Monk

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MAU MAU 8 NATALIE WETZEL 24 SARAH AHMAD 48

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CONTENTS KAREN MILLS 60 MAKOTO TOJIKI 90 NICK PATON 100 TRIBE MAGAZINE ISSUE 18

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MAU MAU

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MAU MAU mau-‐mau.co.uk

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WHAT REMAINS Sifting through the ashes to conduct my own arson investigation. Seeking evidence of a fire that ravaged me. He meant to light a match to see in the dark. He didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t mean to drop it, or expect it to catch. It surprised him how dry, how brittle, how fragile... I see it wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t arson exactly, but an accident, out of his control. Seeing the flames, he ran for water, tried desperately to quench it. He poured a full bucket at the source, but even then he knew he was too late. The ashes reveal me: Some hot, red, glowing -- some cold, grey, soft -- some smouldering deceptively under the surface. The ashes reveal me: open wounds of the victim, lost keepsakes, memories in glass jars, earrings, lockets, rings, half-burnt photographs of happier times, scattered notebooks. The ashes reveal me, and I wonder how the scars will form in the end... As rose-shaped lumps of red? Or darkened, dull patches of grey? Words: Salma Ruth Bratt Illustration: Teresa Armstrong

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NATALIE WETZEL Natalie is a versatile creative - sculptor, magazine editor, film maker, designer and model. A chance meeting on About.Me with tribe’s Mark Doyle led to interesting conversations, including working with The Flaming Lips... How would you describe your creativity? You are a magazine editor, a sculptor and artist, a film maker and a model… so where does the creative process start for you? I’ve always had a desire to make whimsical ideas tangible. When I was five years old, I made a polaroid camera out of cardboard with a working button that ejected cardboard photos. In secret, I drew my mom in poses around our house with the clothes she was wearing. Then, I directed her to pose and snapped the pictures. I asked her recently what she thought when I handed her the crayon drawings from my little camera sculpture all those years ago, and she said, “Oh, I don’t know. It was just normal for you.” My creative process is still waiting for that moment when an idea tickles me, and then figuring out how the hell I’m going to make it happen. Pairing that desire with the critical abilities I’ve developed through earning a couple art degrees, and working in different creative fields, has become my process. Sometimes making work feels safe, like when I

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lock myself in my studio investigating new techniques and exploring concepts, listening to experimental music like The Flaming Lips, Sugar Baron, and Damn The Witch Siren. While I treat my studio as a sanctuary, I also believe it is important to do things that scare me. With the scope of my projects becoming larger, sometimes I feel like I’ve jumped off a cliff and I’m trying to grab debris and feathers from birds flying by to build a plane before dying on the rocks below. I keep jumping because I enjoy learning curves. Also, I keep convincing people that I want to work with to jump with me. I did make a plane and fly it to Paris once, albeit through the magic of stop motion and a fifty foot lift. As far as modeling, I was encouraged over the years by photographers to go for it. It is an odd thing to be a model, because I’ve always viewed myself like one of my monstrous sculptures. Michael O’Neill took some of the first images of me at White Sands in New Mexico. I think he was amazed at how uncomfortable I was in front of the camera. Despite that, he got some great shots. Then,

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NYC photographer Angela Cappetta coached me on how to give that “look.” In the beginning I’d whisper, “Am I doing okay, Angela?” She’d whisper back, “Yes, honey.” Modeling has fed my art, making it more performance based, allowing me to become a living , breathing , walking sculpture. Consequently, photography and video have become bigger components of my work, as it documents the performances. You head G’NAT Productions, and work with clients to produce unique product installations or "visual merchandising sculpture" How did this idea come about? G’NAT Productions came about because I found myself crossing over into more commercial areas. The work I do through G’NAT Productions has my aesthetic touch while it is also specific my clients. I work with businesses and musicians to create unique sculptural work for store displays, stage elements, album or music video art. In most projects, I also integrate 2D elements with 3D elements, like for the album art of Rucka Rucka Ali’s Rucka’s World and Sugar Baron’s Monet on the Dance Floor. In some cases, I approach clients because I love their work, and I think what I do could enhance what they do. In other cases, I’m approached because of my portfolio. A lot of my projects begin when people contact me through my website. I encourage anyone to contact me with interesting possibilities and a budget to make them happen. However, I won’t sell something unless I believe in the work, in the project, with the mutual enthusiasm that comes through collaboration.

Has your modelling career help inform your sculptural work, both for clients and your own creative practice? If so, how has it helped? Yes. It has put me in positions as an observer, practicing patience, listening, as I’ve taken direction from other creatives. I’ve learned a lot about expressing brand identities from teams with a lot of experience. Modeling has also given me a much thicker skin, a better awareness of expressing myself through body language, and security in knowing that the camera, or simply people looking at me, won’t actually capture the weirdness going on in my mind behind a poised stare. I don’t worry about being translucent as I once had. I feel less vulnerable. I am bolder in the risks I take in both my studio work and with clients as a result. What comes across in your work is that you are very passionate about Detroit and the creativity in the city -‐ did the citys' creativity decline along with its industry or has it always been a vibrant place for art? How are things changing and developing? How are they changing in respect to your work? I can speak as an artist working in Metro Detroit now, one who sees the creative community there working as an active part of the city. There are of course no easy fixes to what’s going on in Detroit, but I see the environment as one of opportunity for artists, with solutions above problems. My co editor in chief at G’NAT Mag, Jono Sturt, earned his Master’s degree from the University of Michigan, with a thesis concerning the rebuilding of a fictitious version of a devastated Detroit. I value his opinion greatly,

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because he is fantastic with abstraction, yet he has feasible ideas on ways to make improvements within the city. Our next issue of G’NAT Mag is themed urban gardening, reflecting our mutual interest in the topic. We are very careful to not portray young people in capes swooping in to save the city; we are not that naive. However, we do focus on the optimism of creatives in Metro Detroit because that’s who we are. I am, however, a rather nomadic creature and fairly new to Detroit. I’ve bounced from Ohio to New Mexico, New York, Europe, all in pursuit of my art. I am passionate about the power of creative problem solving, and my energies to promote the arts, community, and creative entrepreneurship have traveled with me. Detroit has kept me longer than most spots. It is an interesting place, and I like being a part of what’s happening there. Has the internet changed with way you create work and reach your audience? The internet has been around for all of my professional life, but recently, like with any professional, it has certainly become a must. I am on the usual social media scene, and I have three websites (nataliewetzelgallery.com, gnatproductions.com, and gnatmag.com). I think handling one’s own marketing is now graspable; however, marketing is a full time profession. I prefer to spend my time making art rather than promoting it, and I’ve been looking for the right person to take on the other side of things. As far as social media influencing my work, I would say that when YouTube became popular

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my interest in making video shorts grew. That has since guided the sculpture I’ve created in my studio. I have been making more miniatures, articulated characters, costumes, while forming relationships with musicians and writers for multimedia endeavors. In addition to creating bodies of sculpture meant for gallery exhibitions, I now make a lot of ephemeral work that is designed for images and video. The transitory nature of materials has always been an interest of mine, and video is a great way to capture the inevitability of decay. Can you tell us about the Medusadorf exhibition and work? I love to research topics that interest me, while letting the magic in life guide my decisions. Medusadorf was an exhibition I developed for the venue at Full Moon Farm in Medusa, New York. I interpreted the myth of the terrifying Medusa, who destroyed intruders by turning them to stone. I bridged her story to a modern day, dynamic, powerful, and beautiful woman. This body of work conveys Medusa as she wields her potential to destroy with the knowledge that for her, domesticity is rebellion. After researching, I did a series of paintings and drawings of women, each with varying sizes of snakes slithering from their heads. Those did not end up in the exhibition, but offered me time for meditation. Then, I started investigating domestic processes as I imagined they might relate to Medusa on her home island of Cisthene in the Red Sea. For example, I sewed coverings for Medusa’s snakes, using different types of hosiery and lingerie

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materials, representing a “No-‐nonsense,” “Sexy,” and “Angelic” Medusa. I incorporated those with cast and altered human faces that further represented Medusa’s dynamically different moods. Each of the three masks has a third eye while the naturally placed eyes are sewn shut. Wearing the masks, Medusa becomes less threatening, because she can’t turn others to stone. However, she is able to use her insight via her third eye. The idea that her snakes would each have their own covering is comical. This, like all my work, balances humor with darkness. I also crushed eggshells with a rolling pin, and then formed them into teacups with snakeskin detailing. The cups sat on a dining table made from driftwood supported by welded steel that I manipulated to look like vines. An infant Pegasus creature sat in a crib beside the table. I didn’t know that Pegasus was Medusa’s child until researching for the work, and thought it was just wonderful that Medusa was a mother. I do not have kids, but I often convey the process of motherhood in my art. I have this fear that if I actually do have a child, it would come out with hooves and feathers or something. I also photographed reflections of me wearing a Medusa sculpture wig, performing and looking directly into the reflection, camera, and therefore at the viewer. Perseus was able to defeat Medusa by watching her in the reflection of his shield, so I wanted to play with the idea of attacker and victim, observer and subject, and also the idea of Medusa being able to reflect upon herself. I was alone for this shoot, and I went from screaming to crying to get the shots.

The character of Medusa in my exhibition certainly came to be a self portrait in many ways. She represents my fear that having a kid and keeping a house (or cozy cave) would be the ultimate rebellion of my nature. And, if someone gets close enough to me I’ll have to keep a mask on or sew my eyes shut, becoming a blind something else, to keep from turning them to stone and emotionally destroying them. Contrarily, kindness, mindfulness, and fairness are incredibly important to me in relationships and in general. I suppose my equal could be the cure to my Medusa curse. We’ll see. I’m with a writer now, and paper does beat rock. He always knows what to say, and it is often very funny. One of the other works that intrigued me was the Spacefrog Holiday Saga... For G’NAT Mag’s Holiday Episode, we decided to create a narrative about a Spacefrog that collides with Santa, killing him in the crash land to earth. The alien frog, played by me, then wanders around the suburbs until finding love with an equally unusual creature, the Goatman, played by Jan Kruszewski of Sugar Baron. I made the sculpture costumes, Jono directed the shoot, Colin Wilson did the illustrated elements, and Jacob Lewkow was the photographer. Why a frog? I’ve always loved frogs. I spent my days catching them as a kid, but then realized that they did not enjoy it as I did, and that I was hurting them. I began making art referencing frogs. To me, they represent a vulnerability to their environment, and are creatures viewed as repulsive or strangely

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attractive (Kermit). Therefore, they are creatures to which I have an emotional connection. Empaths are like amphibians within my logic. Why space? I find the idea of infinite space mind blowing. Whenever I mope into an existential dilemma, it is comforting to me thinking about how small I actually am. It reminds me of humility. Then, I do things like call up my co editor in chief and say, “Jono, I think we should make our holiday issue about an alien space frog in striped socks. Yes?” He agreed. He also once corrected me on a reference to a particular type of vessel in Strar Trek, to which I replied by touching my nose and pointing at him with my other hand. This sci fi slant was not a hard sale. You made a video for the Flaming Lips -‐ how did that come about? Yeah Yeah Yeah, I’ve loved their music for a long time. Additionally, I’ve always been drawn to them as visual artists, with their independent vibe, both risky and dynamic. What I do, the way I see the world and filter it through my art, doesn’t really make sense within a lot of contexts, but I’ve always felt like it made sense in relation to what they do. Duct tape, frogs, blood, glitter, whimsy. I unexpectedly met Wayne Coyne, frontman of The Flaming Lips, and Matt Duckworth of Stardeath and the White Dwarfs, who was drumming for the Lips, last summer. I was in Columbus working with The Town Monster on some ideas for sculpture costumes. The Lips were in town for the All Good Festival. Matt and I talked about possibly collaborating on something.

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Recently, I saw that Genero.tv was working with The Flaming Lips on a contest for filmakers to create a music video for the first track, Look... The Sun Is Rising off their new album, The Terror. I thought, “Yup.” I made miniatures of the band, a bunch of sci fi props, and played a pregnant lady with a glowing womb. The song is about dreading the sun rising because of facing realities that are very unpleasant. The narrative that I wrote involves a fetus on earth communicating with The Flaming Lips, who orbit the moon in a spaceship, to cause an eclipse blocking the sun from rising. The mother (me) then is able to continue sleeping peacefully. I roped photographer Eric Hampton in with me, and he did magical things with photography. The whole thing is stop motion! I gave Wayne the miniatures. He really liked them. What a hoot. Where would you like to take your creative practice next? What can we expect from you in the future? I’m currently planning an Art Tour, by forming collaborations with musicians from Michigan to California. I’m making sculpture costumes specific to each artist, and will travel westward for delivery and documentation of the resulting happenings. I’m accepting costume commission requests through my G’NAT Productions website. This project will unite a lot of my interests. I definitely giggled to myself when I thought of doing it, which is a very good sign indeed. <

gnatproductions.com nataliewetzelgallery.com

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Natalie Â Wetzel gnatproductions.com TRIBE MAGAZINE ISSUE 18

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Sarah Â Lederman sarahlederman.com

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SARAH AHMAD a design diary What makes a space, what makes a living, what sprays and what wobbles, slides and turns, what runs and stops, bumps into another, does it smell, does it wash, does it support, does it flip, and flop, folds, stacks and rises, is brown, is grainy, is transparent and blue, is lighted, is muted, what stores things, collects things, opens its mind, braves the heat, trips yet pierces, livens and darkens, does it frame, does it fly, does it pass by, is it a being, crawling and sprawling, on a summer day, into an awkward silence, does it help, does it stand, is it art, is it blue, green and yellow, what makes it big, what makes it small, is it found, is it lost, what makes it bring together, what makes it stands apart, a minute, a pasture, reality and dreams; art that becomes somebody, things that have something to say, every move, each day. Five things, too many, five days, too little -‐ A Design Diary: Five days of Design.

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Day one: It might have been a living being, one with two webbed feet, a tall torso and a fragile heart. Confused yet charismatic, a split personality yet it stood its ground. A frame, about three inches wide, around a thick sheet of toughened glass, on a track, in a straight line, left to right, right to left. Whish! Two separate doors, a parting and a coming together, sometimes this, and sometimes that. A large hearted doorway and a white powder coated frame. Here we are, on the first day with Sliding Doors: with the fragile glass ones. Yet we have, the rather simple ones, the hard grainy ones, the bamboo rattan ones, the French window ones, the slated, the matted, the tattered ones. Glass doors, an easy find, in balconies and office doorways, shops near sidewalks and during shopping spree days. Doors, they come, they go, yet brought together and parted away. Doors, in infinite places, sliding to and fro, leading to the outside, a world away from the interiors of minds, located in corporate houses and lazy afternoon homecoming strolls. Green, sandy pathways, glistening tiled floors, as the doors part, so do two worlds, between the light and heat of reality and air conditioned dreams. The glass ones, fragile yet large hearted, parting ways, leading to a life you saw within them, on reflective transparent sheets of water, hard and toughened to stand tall. Openness, lightness, sheen; expansive doors, to expansive skies.

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Day two: Doors that open to mugs and souvenirs, serve ware and earthenware. Thursday afternoon, two o’ clock, I rummage through little tea cups and saucer plates to find those cork coasters and dessert spoons. Ceramic, porcelain, steel, wood, cotton, glass, it holds the burden of a world. A world brought together from antique stores, flea markets, holiday strolls, kiosks of souvenirs, from Indian streets and lifestyle stores, it holds and beholds. Not arguing, never complaining, it takes in more. With Sideboards on the second day: the ones with shutters, glass and wooden frames, then those ones, the freer ones, only a base and four legs, coral shells and potted plants in aluminium jars, magazines and framed mirrors. Sideboards which, open, which close, behind wooden shutters and visible glass panels lay stories from a year back, from a few miles away, from people who came into our lives, from plain necessities and sometimes little petty finds. A world exists, yet so still, brought to life in summer homes, and on winter days, on dinner tables, decorated pedestals, into the warmth of a family and a life of an unknown.

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Day three: She said “We might need them, maybe, today, or maybe tomorrow, the days are not getting any cooler”. I could pick up today’s newspaper to vaporise the heat on my face, an update on the political and social environment of yesterday, and a hand fan of today. Yet, I always carry back a few memories from my grandmother’s place in Gaya, a tin of food, and a hand fan or two. Made of bamboo, a slight paint, a stick, hard and floppy, little finds from the East, a stack on a bicycle in Gaya, a lonely yet a clever piece of art in sultry afternoons of Delhi. Friday noon, with Hand held fans: open rigid ones, folded fabric ones, into pockets of purses and bags, on summer days, of vogue and shine. A swish, of the Japanese folding fan, a swash of the rigid bamboo fan, the invisibility of heat for a second, the visibility of coolness in another. They might have come in, unexplained, yet in a hurry, for some heat, with some wind, air and lightness, printed fabric skins, on bamboo frames, a folded piece of magic, and an open piece of joy.

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Day four: Like people, like bottles: colourful, short, tall, thin, round, hard, soft, fancy, simple, breakable, tough, rough, dreamy, pretty little things. Fourth day with Bottles; to eat and drink: wet, cold and fizzy in sculpted plastic, wine cellars and boxes, of pickles and jams, celebratory things, tubes of glass, now red and some white, some gold, some printed, some painted, liquid in decanters of crystal, stainless steel, a cork and an opener, a life of its own, and a roof (lid) over its head. To Spray: a smell, a sound, it spreads with an equality, drops of dew in the air, suspended and fallen. I found a few empty ones, muddled in the drawer, fragrance of fruit and people still in the air, a half used one, a silver cap, an embedded note, smell of a time gone by and one to come. To decorate: little ropes of bulbs immersed in coloured jars, placed on, held to, twigs and stems in stubby ones, shells and stones piled into short fat ones, painted polka dots with candy treats, weird ones, eccentric ones, electric ones, matted ones and spotted ones. They collide against each other, co-‐existing in electronic freezing zones and on dressing tables, in stores and cellars and on decorated trays and bases, bottles of white and gold, of sun and shade, of air and water, fire and earth. Like bottles like people: warm at one time, cold at another, sober at one time, crazy at another, brimming at one time exhausted at another.

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Day five: Behind garage doors and inside invaluable towers, holding still and holding strong, altogether, as one. Magically parts of a plain white wall would appear painted, magically pieces of wood would make a desk, a plain piece of ply board would become a door with a brass handle and a hinged side, a drawer would have something to pull with and a pane would have something to hold on to. An answer for everything, glue, a tape and a hammer, a nail and screw, bringing the house together, building a space or two. A knob and a handle, those little decorative things, which pull, push and slide, metallic rounds and squares, donut shaped grasps and almost invisible ones, a stack of screws, a hammer and a few chunks of nails, nuts and bolts, a brass handle or two, board pins, catchers and closers, a trick or two up their sleeve and an uncanny quality to bring alive corners and passage ways, they would escape into corners and crevices, cracks and spaces, binding and grinding through. On the fifth day with Hardware: it takes a stand and never gives up, it sticks and lifts, brings back old, abandoned pieces of scraps of wood and paint and memories, together. “We would miss that sound without you, we would miss that valour, we would miss that time without you and the colour, the smell of incense, the light and the cellar” Sarah Ahmad sarah@tribemagazine.org

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KAREN MILLS Karen is one of the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading bodypainters and make-up artists. Her work has taken her around the globe and to clients such as the BBC. Recently tribe took the opportunity to collaborate with her on some shoots.

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Japanese illustrator Keita Sagaki has a distinctive style of illustration. He talked to us recently about this unique take on his art.

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CREDITS: Photography: Mark Doyle Make-‐up: Karen Mills (thebodypainter.carbonmade.com) Head Dress: AlienFox Designs Models: Debra Smitham, Emma Farrell, Jenny Kelly 72

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Pablito Â Zago www.facebook.com/pablitozago TRIBE MAGAZINE ISSUE 18

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Some wisdom is unspoken but strongly felt, not ignored but lost in a language of signs. Seen by those who give it aYen4on. Abstract Art speaks to the heart, like words to the mind. -‐ Bregje Horsten TRIBE MAGAZINE ISSUE 18

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Kev Harper Bregje Horsten bregjehorsten.com TRIBE MAGAZINE ISSUE 18

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Where does the crea4ve process start for you? Firstly always there is an ideal image. Watching a video works (movie and an anima]on). observing nature. reading a scien]fic ar]cle or talking with a person in a different field of work. It is accumulated liSle by liSle by these experiences that interest me. When I get there, these images are combined like a flash! The first ideal image is born like that. This image is very concrete, and it open becomes a work in approximately the same form. Aperwards, I look at the technique necessary to realise it and get closer to an ideal image. What do you like about working with light? I am aSracted by formless characteris]cs like an atmosphere. People can feel the light via various senses not only simply looking. The light is elusive and very wonderful thing, in spite of it exis]ng around our body day to day. I am also aSracted too by light's characteris]c of not having a mass. Shadows play an important part of your work thema4cally. What are you looking to explore through your art in regard to shadows? The shadow has been considered to be a symbol of proof and the iden]ty of the existence in my past work. Next, I want to feature the theme of the shadows physical side. If a three-‐dimensional shadow is two-‐dimensional, I think there is something to explore regarding rela]onships of the various dimensions. I'm really curious about this phenomenon. There is also a strong element of science, physics in par4cular in your art. Do you think that art has a place in helping us to understand the complexi4es of science? What role does it play for you? The physical law is always constant regardless of human sense. Nevertheless, the human feeling always changes. Generally, people cannot watch things with absolute vision -‐ people watch things rela]vely. I want to give s]mula]on to the sense and viewpoint by showing a scien]fic element. I think that the art helps understand that science is not complicated, rather science can show a certain phenomenon more purely. I want to become this translator.

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Lee Â Connor leedavidsonconnor.tumblr.com TRIBE MAGAZINE ISSUE 18

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How do audiences react to your light work? People stared at the No Shadow series, round-‐eyed with amazement. some]mes raise a shout of joy! They look for a while and finally go to touch it (but it's unsuitable for touching). And they ask me a ques]on "how did you make that?!” Surely, I think this work evokes a sense of those hologram images you see in movies. And the audiences find fun in those images appearing in front of them in reality. What is next for you? Where do you want to take your work next? What new projects are you developing? I am making a work for a charity event using LED and op]cal-‐fiber, this work has the characteris]c like a cut part of stars in a night sky. It is already four years ago that I announced the NoShadow series. I am beginning to make a replacement and a new formaSed work from the NoShadow series. The characteris]c of this work is to make a sculpture with only light. The theme is minority and loss of individuality. I intend to let a work reflect my thought more than before. I want to begin to make a work for private exhibi]on. Therefore, looking for the right place so I must collect funds. < makototojiki.com

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NI.CO.LA

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Makoto Tojiki makototojiki.com TRIBE MAGAZINE ISSUE 18

NICK PATON

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How would you describe your work? I am interested in the rela]onship between image and text and the ability photography has to dis]ll memory. In an anthropological way I seek to record the idiosyncrasies of human behavior. My work, through a triad of spectatorship discusses the in]macy and beauty of photography. What makes a great image for you? What should an image convey? It should be layered with signiﬁcance. Not explanatory, but lep for the viewer to connect with, for me, an image is a record of an event and an object of codes. Where does the crea4ve process start for you? In a dark room, from research surrounded by books, or on a long walk listening to good music. There are many ways I think, but to make good work you have to look at everything. It’s all there, you just have to be looking for it. How do you see the role of documentary photography in the modern world? Is it s4ll relevant to people's lives? Has the internet changed that dynamic? I think documentary photography is extremely important. In a personal way what I ﬁnd most interes]ng is how these images are distributed. Yes, we all know everyone is a photographer and we can all take a photo to some degree; but the choices people have to share images is fascina]ng. Through

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certain plasorms personal stories can become universally accessible (there are pro’s and con’s to this). The ‘album’ with ]tles, cap]ons and dates complete all metadata, geo-‐tags to document ‘your’ story. The personal story is one I ﬁnd inspiring. This harks back to a paper I wrote on the rela]onship between image and text -‐ which was inspired from a box of images I inherited from my Grandparents da]ng from the 1920’s. The images within the box I found most intriguing where the images without cap]ons on the reverse. These ‘orphaned’ images are part of my history, yet I have no textual informa]on of these moments. I used my family story and the rhetoric of the images to decipher codes of personal and historical signiﬁcance from Pales]ne, North America and Europe. Can you tell us about your Inherited series? The idea came to me when I was wri]ng my thesis paper. At the ]me I was working on my series ‘ Touched’; a portrait based project. It fell into place aper gradua]on when I was thinking of an idea for the Jill Todd Photo Award; subsequently the work was selected for the exhibi]on in November 2012. The theme was ‘Kin’ -‐ I realized I had an idea that was poignant, that I wanted to do personally. I photographed my own, family, friends and friends of friends, inherited belongings to make a catalogue of images of objects -‐ again mimicking photography. The series was accompanied with quotes in a non-‐linear or associated way to the images. This project seemed important to record what people kept as a trace of their family history and their thoughts on those objects; the objects

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have no monetary value, only personal. Both Touched and Inherited are on-‐going projects. Your work deals a lot with memory -‐ is this an important theme for you? What does film and photography bring to this subject? I find memory very powerful. We all want to remember certain people, events and places, maybe thats why we all take photograph’s? For me I have to be passionate about the projects or images I take; I have to be as honest as I can be and I find no]ons of memory seem to be a good subject for this. It’s what I find interes]ng most of all. But of course this is my subjec]ve way! The s]ll image creates a star]ng point and the viewer is lep, I hope, to drip away with the subject through the influence of both image and text. My methods carry no]ons of the pure and honest to allow a simple reading of an image with complex layers. A film is a narra]on for me -‐ where the viewer is guided through by a passage of ]me. It is different to the s]ll image as it has a defini]ve end. Both offer great systems to engage the viewer in differing ways. I am strongly of the opinion that no two projects should be approached the same -‐ there are specific codes to create and use to engage the viewer. It all depends on the story. What makes a good portrait subject? It is a hard ques]on to pin down. I am unsure. I usually find people on the street or family/friends/friends of friends -‐ I find I am impulsive; it’s that moment when I see someone and I think they are able to

communicate ‘something’ I see, I then try to capture this typically in another environment that is fiung to what I want to say. I find that there has to be a collabora]on between myself and siSer -‐ some]mes they take a picture of me first. Every photographer has there own way and I think it’s just finding what works best for you. When you find it, go with it. You currently live in Paris -‐ does it live up to its reputa4on for crea4ve endeavour? How has living in Paris influenced your work? I have recently found great coffee shops -‐ you have to search for good coffee in Paris. What I find inspira]onal is surrounding yourself by good people and Paris has it’s fair share of them. For me, good light is impera]ve and Paris has light! What plans do you have for future work? Where would you like to take your work next? I am always making images, wri]ng and thinking about new ideas; joung it down for the right moment! But through an interes]ng turn of events I have become interested in dark subject maSers that I want to explore. I have applied for a residency in Japan where I think my project could work. Residencies are great for being able to have full crea]ve control with support for new working ideas. I want to expand out of the purely photographic image and into installa]on and sculpture. < nickpaton.com

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Nick Paton nickpaton.com

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