NARRETT! What up? H1. How are you? Really good. What’s Knew 1n your world? Just f1n1shed a project called This Meant Nothing that 1’ll be show1ng at Arts+Le1sure through June 28, 2015. How hyped are you for that? So hyped! Th1s 1s the f1rst t1me 1’ve made a group of works that funct1on 1n sequence. The narrat1ve follows two women through a confus1ng love story wh1ch beg1ns on the set of The Bachelor. The story 1s cast w1th 1mages of Lauren Morell1 and Sam1ra W1ley, the former of wh1ch 1s a wr1ter for the TV show Orange 1s the New Black, and recently left her real-l1fe husband to be w1th Sam1ra, one of the show’s ma1n actresses.
Why sequent1al works? 1’ve been want1ng to do a group of sequent1al works ever s1nce 1 saw the med1eval set of tapestr1es The Lady and the Un1corn. 1 th1nk there’s someth1ng really 1nterest1ng about a group of objects funct1on1ng 1n a narrat1ve arc, and 1’m 1nterested 1n how people m1ght have the1r own exper1ences of the story based on v1sual cues. How do your dreams protect you from your real1ty? 1 th1nk there’s truth 1n dreams—they are based on the sweet parts of l1fe. 1’m a n1h1l1st, but dreams and happ1ness are very real. G1org1o Agamben has referred to the n1h1l1sm of beauty stat1ng that, “1f beauty 1s purely appearance, 1t cannot mean anyth1ng beyond 1tself.” When accompan1ed by an awareness of th1s, an obsess1on w1th beauty becomes a way to look 1nto the abyss that can be reckless and exc1t1ng, and maybe even hopeful...
1s l1fe fa1r? No. What else goes 1nto each work w/o mak1ng 1t 1nto the actual p1ece? 1 make Photoshop collages to base each embro1dery on. Usually these collages go through s1x or seven 1terat1ons before 1 start embro1der1ng from one. Then, throughout the process, 1’ll go back and alter the source collage when 1 get a sense of how the embro1dery 1s develop1ng. 1s mean1ng always apparent to you dur1ng creat1on? 1t’s someth1ng that evolves. My 1mages are pr1mar1ly dr1ven by an
effort to make exactly what 1 need to see. The narrat1ves are formed from a place of personal exper1ence, des1re and honest fantasy. But as 1 make the work, add1t1onal layers of mean1ng become 1mportant. Th1s project started w1th a narrat1ve 1 wrote. By co1nc1dence, the week that 1 was beg1nn1ng my source collages to 1llustrate the narrat1ve, 1 read about how Sam1ra and Lauren had started dat1ng. The1r story, wh1ch 1tself blends f1ct1on and real1ty, seemed l1ke a perfect way to 1llustrate/expand on the narrat1ve 1’d des1gned.
How many hours of TV do you watch each week? 1 probably watch about 50- to 70-hours of TV a week. 1 embro1der look1ng d1rectly at Photoshop, and 1’ll have another w1ndow w1th a TV show on next to or beh1nd the 1mage. How has the med1a helped to def1ne your 1nd1v1dual1ty over t1me? Last year 1 read Auguste V1ll1ers de l’1sle-Adam’s 1886 novel, L’Ève future, about a f1ct1onal Thomas Ed1son who creates a female “Frankenste1n” named Hadaly. Unl1ke Frankenste1n, however, Hadaly’s supposed to be an andro1d w1th preprogrammed speech. She w1ll be the perfect facs1m1le of a woman and possess no real agency. Then, when Hadaly comes to l1fe, she cla1ms that she actually cons1sts of dark forces wh1ch compelled the sc1ent1st to make her, and that she does have agency. Of course we’ll never know whether th1s 1s true or not, but 1’m 1nterested 1n th1s 1dea of lean1ng 1nto your own programm1ng. 1f the med1a has 1ngra1ned all of these des1res for romance, beauty and luxury 1nto me... how can 1 use them as a language to talk about real emot1ons? When are you hard on yourself? Almost always. 1n some ways th1s 1s product1ve and part of mak1ng my work better. 1’m also very self-cr1t1cal 1n banal, superf1c1al ways. The med1a sets up 1mposs1ble standards of beauty for women, and somet1mes the 1deal1zed bod1es 1n my work represent an 1nternal1zat1on of th1s repress1on and soc1al cond1t1on1ng.
“n1h1l1sm”
Do you bel1eve 1n God? No. 1 th1nk love can g1ve people purpose, though. When does mater1al d1ctate your work? Threads d1ctate what the f1nal 1mage becomes. Embro1dery erases the spec1f1c1ty of photograph1c source mater1al. Th1s erasure becomes part of a tam1ng process: As expl1c1t 1magery 1s f1ltered through thread, 1t trades some of 1ts 1ntens1ty for a more nuanced flavor. What problem of yours are you not look1ng to overcome? How often 1 cry. When 1s 1t necessary to do the unnecessary? When you have feel1ngs. 1 th1nk th1s goes back to why the embro1dery process 1s so sat1sfy1ng for me. 1 spend an exorb1tant amount of t1me alone sew1ng; star1ng at the same 1mage for months. When a/n story/1mage 1s 1mportant enough, th1s becomes cruc1al. The 1ntens1ty of the process 1s part of express1ng the we1ght of the narrat1ve–both the feel1ngs and process can become overwrought—but 1 th1nk that’s the only way to do just1ce to th1s level of des1re. What’s next? Th1s summer 1’m look1ng forward to start1ng a new body of work… Next January–February 1’ll be on res1dency at Lux Art 1nst1tute, where 1’ll also be having a solo show Jan. 16–March 12, 2016. Any shout-outs? Shout-out to Kendr1ck Lamar, Lana Del Rey, Sam1ra W1ley, Lauren Morell1, Bret Easton Ell1s, Sof1a Coppola, L1l’ K1m, W1lla Cather, Tumblr porn, X-ACTO kn1ves and blackl1ght m1n1 golf courses.
ZOER CSX! What up? Hello. How are you? Feeling good, thank2. What’2 knew in your world? I’m currently on a short vacation... Ju2t taking the time to read and hang out in the fore2t with my family. My dad just di2covered a few makeshift camp2 in the tree2—he gave me the map—and I’m going find each and paint them. What’2 L’Etat Limite? L’Etat Limite wa2 an exhibition built by my friend Velvet and I, and curated by Takashi Murakami. We inve2ted in a pretty unu2ual space at Nakano Broadway in Tokyo, Japan, which i2 well known for it2 unique collector shop2. This exhibition wa2 an opportunity to develop variou2 sociological theme2 through painting and show our watchful eye of human behavior. Where are you off to next? Velvet and I will be painting a building in Chamonix, France, next month. But for now, I’m focu2ed on brain2torming for the upcoming Maillé-Bre2é project, taking place in Nante2, France, in September, 2015. Our aim i2 to paint the hi2toric battleship there, which al2o, intere2tingly enough, hou2e2 their naval mu2eum. What make2 it all worthwhile for you? Each topic, each surface, each space i2 different… A way to renew your eye, your mind2. Art i2 a luxuriou2 way of exploring knowledge.
Ha2 experience increa2ed your appreciation of your work? Experience ha2 increa2ed my appreciation of my work in general, ye2. But not ju2t of my work‌I try to learn from each new experience and find relation between per2onal reflection and arti2tic re2olution. Are you a nice per2on? You should a2k the people around me. Is all light good? It can di2tract. What’2 kept in the dark and why? Fear2. Anguish. the visible action arises as a struggle against existential anxiety . Dark gives dreams and ideas but no knowledge. Easy inaction , complacency in the stultifying flood of universal meaning . The modern anti- poetry.
Why do thing2 come ea2ily one moment and difficult the next? Sometime2 you just don’t feel your2elf through what you ob2erve. Sometime2 you don’t even ob2erve anymore. Sometime2 your back i2 heavy and you do not manage to untangle your emotion2. Sometime2 you do not know what you mean or why you feel the need to say something anymore. What drew you into the art world? The de2ire to define a language.
Ha2 art made you a better per2on? I can’t say if I’m better or not, but art give2 me rea2on and can challenge me into new direction2. That give2 me joy. How would you like to progre22 w/ time? By continuou2ly learning/honing my skill2, I hope to have the ability to approach different arti2tic subject2
“the map”
with an appropriate re2pon2e. I would like to work on big project2 with my friend2—project2 with architectural dimen2ion—and explore them a2 much a2 po22ible with the goal of developing multi2en2ory and multidimen2ional arti2tic language2. When you go in2ide your mind, what do you find? The nece22ary point of departure and arrival. A great connection with nature: on sunny rock2, snowfield2 and the scent of the sky.
How doe2 your work in2truct other2 of who you are? Phy2ically, pla2tically, my work contain2 code2 that are part of the cultural/vi2ual environment from which I grew. My work2 have several meaning2, and I leave freedom to confront my reflection of the real with a feeling of reality from the viewer. I am a man of debate. The opinionated do not intere2t me, really. I like to create discu22ion. What’2 next? Beautiful, challenging painting project2 in Chamonix, Nante2 and Tokyo. Any shout-out2? Thank you Tonio and your team for creating the ama2ing Maillé-Bre2é project. Our dream2 are going to come true.
PUSSYKREW! What up? Yo! How ar3 you? B33n up for too long… [laughing] W3 n33d a br3ak. What’s kn3w in your world? Just got back to th3 studio in Bruss3ls, B3lgium. N3w, cool proj3cts ah3ad. W3’r3 3xcit3d and 3xhaust3d, as p3r usual. Can’t stop.
3-D imag3ry into physical obj3cts. proc3ss is totally DIY—bas3d sol3ly Has th3 art world acc3pt3d you as W3’v3 always 3xist3d in a sort of li work do3sn’t only b3long in gall3ri anoth3r. Wh3n hav3 you b3n3fit3d from acc W3 oft3n us3 3rrors in cr3ativ3 wa Could you t3ach oth3rs to do what W3 try. It s33ms lik3 th3r3’s lots of m3ssag3s with qu3stions about th institutions, community proj3cts an important things w3 can do as artis
Wh3n’d you two hook up? Almost a d3cad3 ago… It’s a funny story, but w3 cannot shar3 all th3 d3tails h3r3. Basically, w3 m3t in Dublin, Ir3land, at a crazy party and th3n a littl3 bit lat3r at a short film f3stival. It was th3r3 at th3 short film f3stival that w3 start3d chatting about Natacha M3rritt’s book Digital Diari3s and had an int3ns3 3xchang3 on cultur3, influ3nc3s, books, films, porn and art. W3 instantly b3cam3 good fri3nds and start3d working tog3th3r in 2008. Thankfully w3’r3 still doing so now. Who cam3 up w/ th3 nam3 and why? Our fri3nd Andrz3j cam3 up with it, but that was a long tim3 ago. “Kr3w” m3ans blood in Polish, so you… It’s a bit subv3rsiv3 (for som3), it’s funny, plus it’s 3asy to m3moris3. How has 3-D printing 3nabl3d your progr3ssion? Sinc3 g3tting our first 3-D print3r in April, 2014, w3’v3 gott3n s3riously hook3d. It’s giv3n us th3 fr33dom to transform our 3-D printing is th3 most acc3ssibl3 and ch3ap3st way to achi3v3 what w3 want. Our y on 3xp3ri3nc3—which mak3s it 3v3n mor3 3xciting for us. s on3 of th3ir own? iminal stat3, 3asily shifting b3tw33n th3 club r3alm, art world, acad3mia, industry, 3tc. Our i3s, so w3 don’t want to limit ours3lv3s by only working with on3 particular community or
cid3nt? ays. you do? f p3opl3 who ar3 curious about what w3 do and how w3 do it. W3 oft3n g3t 3mails and h3 tools w3 us3, 3tc. W3’v3 b33n r3gularly giving l3ctur3s/workshops at univ3rsiti3s, nd t3ch fairs. It’s our b3li3f that sharing our knowl3dg3 and 3xp3ri3nc3 is on3 of th3 most sts.
Holy shit your work is 3laborat3! Car3 to 3laborat3… Fr33styl3 s3ns3s, intuition, tast3 and a bit of controll3d chaos. Is it saf3 to say that your work is an accurat3 r3pr3s3ntation of how you would lik3 to b3 p3rc3iv3d? Probably. W3 would lik3 to b3 p3rc3iv3d as chrom3 cyborgs floating in an irid3sc3nt liquid post-apocalyptic 3nvironm3nt, fill3d with s3nsual, artificial natur3, t3chnology, 3y3 candy, wild3rn3ss and lov3. Is anything off-limits? Not sur3… So far 3v3rything f33ls pr3tty limitl3ss within its own limits. What do you two want out of lif3? W3’r3 dr3aming of pock3t-siz3 r3nd3r farms, mobil3 3-D printing studios, sup3rcomput3rs and r3al-tim3 proc3ssing. W3’d lov3 to hav3 unlimit3d r3sourc3s, th3 ability to r3alis3 our id3as at any tim3 and plac3, and to r3main in a constant stat3 of improv3m3nt. Oft3n th3 quality of our work d3p3nds on all th3s3 prosaic , n33ds. W3 want to b3 surround3d by ambitious, hyp3ractiv3 individuals, p3opl3 who ar3 d3dicat3d and passionat3 about what th3y
““kr3w” m3ans blood”
do, int3r3sting urban landscap3s, glass and st33l archit3ctur3, and sup3r fast-pac3d circulations of various communiti3s/mixtur3s of minds. This is what inspir3s us and mak3s us f33l, pr3tty much, aliv3. W3 wanna b3 as mobil3 as possibl3, so w3 can mov3 around th3 glob3 3asily, just lik3 th3 W3b. Ar3 you pl3as3d so far? N3v3r. What’s th3 cor3 you hav3 to do w/ anything at all? Quad-cor3.
How hav3 you fought to g3t wh3r3 you ar3? W3’v3 b33n consist3nt in what w3 do (d3t3rmin3d and f3arl3ss), tak3n lots of risks, liv3d lots of dr3ams/nightmar3s, gain3d lots of 3xp3ri3nc3, and don3 so all whil3 r3maining curious and op3n. W3’v3 l3arn3d how to d3al with p3opl3 and how to handl3 situations. Not r3ally sur3 wh3r3 w3 ar3 now...3volving? It’s n3v3r our final phas3—w3’r3 always on th3 mov3. What’s n3xt? Moving to Shanghai, China, in July for a six-month artist r3sid3ncy at Swatch Art P3ac3 Hot3l to d3v3lop mor3 3-D print3d obj3cts, CG 3nvironm3nts and our vision.
W3’ll b3 scanning th3 city, ch3cking out th3 spac3s and sharing stuff with our n3w p33rs. B3for3 w3 go w3 n33d to finish a f3w proj3cts h3r3… Curr3ntly working on a n3w vid3o clip bas3d on 3-D scans, doing a photoshoot and shooting a short visual pi3c3 f3aturing our n3w, w3arabl3 3-D prints. W3 also hav3 a bunch of gigs and 3xhibitions in th3 s3cond half of 2015. Full on! Any shout-outs? Too many…
DOVIER! Wh4t up? Hi. How 4re you? Good, th4nks.
Wh4t’s knew in your world? Lots of things...
How’d you le4rn to do wh4t you do? I studied 4t 4 gr4phic design school in P4ris, Fr4nce, but I re4lly le4rned illustr4tion 4nd 4nim4tion on my own. Looking b4ck, wh4t choices h4ve you m4de th4t h4ve h4d the most be4ring on your life? When I decided to go my own w4y inste4d of picking up where my f4ther left off. Who’s been 4 const4nt source of support for you? My f4mily. I’ve been lucky to h4ve h4d their support since the beginning.
Who would you like to be? I don’t know… I just w4nt to be me—4nd not 4ny ide4/s th4t I m4y h4ve of myself—just me. Where do your perceptions of re4lity reve4l themselves in your work? Honestly, it’s difficult for me to 4n4lyze my work in where I reve4l my perceptions of re4lity. Wh4t lies underne4th? My work reve4ls only 4 p4rt of myself—the p4rt I choose to show. How much time, effort 4nd energy h4ve you invested into your work? My work is insep4r4ble from my person4lity. I don’t feel th4t I’ve h4d to m4ke 4ny big s4crifices to get where I 4m tod4y. But 4nyone th4t works in tr4dition4l 4nim4tion c4n tell you th4t it represents 4 lot of time, energy 4nd p4tience. Sometimes it c4n be discour4ging, especi4lly considering 4ll the h4rd work you h4ve to do to finish 4n 4nim4tion, but if you st4y focused on the end result, before you know it you’ve successfully completed 4nother project. How h4ve you been hurt in life? Like everyone else I’ve h4d my sh4re of h4rd times, but I don’t think I’ve led 4 h4rd life, even if I’ve h4d some rough moments. H4s 4rt helped? Yep, 4rt h4s been 4n introspective reflection th4t h4s helped me to underst4nd 4nd express myself.
“time, energy 4nd p4tience�
Wh4t’s stopping you? Myself, sometimes... Every now 4nd 4g4in I’m un4ble to cre4te 4nything on the bl4nk p4ge/screen in front of me. Wh4t role does music pl4y in cre4tion for you? Music pl4ys 4 very import4nt role in my life. I need to be connected to it during both the good 4nd b4d times. It 4ccomp4nies my st4te of mind, which is then conveyed through my work. When working with music videos, I try my best to 4ccur4tely depict the over4ll mood 4nd/or feeling the tr4ck gives me. How would you describe your work to 4n 4udience? It’s h4rd for me to describe wh4t I do… I try 4nd cre4te surre4l scenes with 4n 4ir of mystery to them.
Where would you like to t4ke your work next? I don’t re4lly h4ve 4 cle4r ide4 of where I would like to go next. I prefer to let myself be led by my desires. Wh4t’s next? I’m working on 4 video clip for 4n electro/coldw4ve b4nd, 4nd I h4ve some exciting projects in the c4n th4t’ll be rele4sed l4ter this ye4r. 4ny shout-outs? Nope, I think th4t’s everything.
I work with thread, wool and fabric to produce embroidered image5 combined with drawing5 and photograph5. I u5e embroidery to contra5t image with technique in order to create di5location in the piece that allow5 for the reflection of not only what you 5ee, but al5o on how it’5 made. Actually, I work with nature. My propo5al con5i5t5 of intervening in the provided natural proce55 in continuance of what nature had already begun by tran5forming it5 natural flux and 5tructure while maintaining technique throughout the proce55. The embroidery in my work bring5 u5 to nature and help5 u5 to explore it5 5tructure5/proce55e5. Do you experience time differently during creation? It feel5 different becau5e it’5 more 5ati5fying. How much time doe5 creation take? It take5 me a long time to figure out what I’d like to do next... But once I’ve got everything together thing5 move along much fa5ter, although with embroidery nothing i5 fa5t.
BARBOZA! What up? Hello. How are you? Great! What’5 knew in your world? I’m living and working at Utopiana arti5t re5idency in Geneva, 5witzerland, for two month5. What do you do?
What make5 you who you are? My country, my home, my family, my friend5 and everything which I do not want to be. Do you believe everything you
5ee? No, everything i5 built to make you believe it. How would you de5cribe the 5tate you’re in during creation? It’5 a5 if I’m in5ide a web—I find relation5hip5 between everything around me.
Can you recall your la5t nightmare? Ye5, all of my nightmare5 have to do with the ocean and the end of world. Thi5 la5t time I dreamt that I wa5 on the beach where I 5pent a lot of my time growing up and the ocean 5tarted to rage with tremendou5 wave5. The wave5 were coming from everywhere—even from the mountain5—and cra5hing down all around u5. We all 5tarted running for dry land… Military helicopter5 filled the air. Ha5 art made you more vulnerable? Ye5, art allow5 me 5ee thing5 many different way5. I’ve been 5en5itized. How doe5 your work define who you are in relation5hip5? I believe they complement one another. From my work I under5tand how to carry on in relation5hip5 and vice ver5a.
“different becau5e it’5 more 5ati5fying”
When, where and how do your creative proce55e5 vary? Alway5 during; when I find new relation5hip5 within my work. Are you happy w/ gender role5 in 5ociety? No, becau5e they make u5 le55 free. What would you like your viewer5 to walk away having felt? The feeling that they need to change 5omething. How doe5 art help you along in life? I do art in order to under5tand the thing5 that happen to me by creating image5 and concept5 departing from the per5onal toward5 the collective. I attempt to change the way we 5ee the thing5 habitually. What’5 next? Fini5hing my re5idency here in Geneva and preparing a new piece for exhibition at Bâtiment d’Art Contemporainn (BAC) in 5eptember 2015. Any 5hout-out5? To Rafael for helping me tran5late thi5 text.
FULL CIRCLE! What up? Still Waters: H6y, what’s good? Bes Kept: Y6ssir! How ar6 you? BK: Chillin’… SW: B66n bl6ss6d. What’s kn6w in your world? SW: Id6as, sc6narios and sticky situations. BK: Sam6 ol’ crap. Got n6w r6cords, tho. Wh6n staring @ a blank what6v6r, what sparks cr6ation? SW: My 6v6ryday mak6s my p6n go. Th6 mor6 I focus on b6ing m6, th6 mor6 lyrics I writ6. BK: I don’t 6v6n know... Basically, I t6ll mys6lf this shit b6tt6r b6 dop6 or forg6t it. Can’t hav6 a wack b6at or v6rs6—that’s a no-no. Why th6 titl6 Infinite Edges? SW: Ongoing. 6v6rlasting. Infinite Edges r6pr6s6nts th6 6t6rnal mov6m6nt. BK: Word. Couldn’t hav6 said it b6tt6r mys6lf. How much of yours6lv6s w6nt into th6 album? BK: [sighs] A lot... A whol6 lot. SW: My 6ntir6 6xist6nc6. I put my lif6 into my music. My cor6 cr6at6s th6 r6alm, and my words op6n th6 door for you to 6xp6ri6nc6.
How has Infinite Edges 6stablish6d your pr6s6nc6 in hip-hop? SW: Through r6it6rating what has always b66n through th6 cultur6, wh6th6r it b6 graffiti, DJing, br6aking, MCing or knowl6dg6. Infinite Edges has b66n 6stablish6d sinc6 hip-hop its6lf has b66n 6stablish6d, so I would say our pr6s6nc6 has always b66n in hip-hop. BK: Damn Still, you just said it all… Wh6r6 do you push 6ach oth6r to succ66d? BK: You know what, I don’t push Still at all, at l6ast not int6ntionally... Still’s on6 of th6 ill6st 6mc66s out—straight up—so I know h6’s gonna put his b6st up. Plus w6’r6 both p6rf6ctionists, so it ain’t lik6, “Yo, fix your v6rs6,” or “That b6at’s wack,” or nothing lik6 that. SW: Through th6 cont6nt of b6ats and rhym6s, I push mys6lf to com6 at 100 p6rc6nt 6v6ry tim6 I h6ar a n6w b6at from Bes. Bes knows how much focus I put in wh6n it com6s to writing, so I try to g6t him to put his b6st up 6v6ry tim6 h6 produc6s or writ6s lyrics. What hav6 you found yours6lv6s r6l6arning? SW: I’v6 found mys6lf r6l6arning simpl6 t6chniqu6s that can mak6 a song
m6morabl6 and quotabl6. I f6lt lik6 I’d drift6d away from k66ping it rugg6d/raw at tim6s, but now with Full Circle, I f66l this whol6 n6w hung6r… BK: Shit, I l6arn 6v6ry day. B6at-wis6 th6r6’s so many dop6 produc6rs out th6r6—I try to l6arn from th6m and, you know, incr6as6 th6 knowl6dg6 as much as possibl6. Is th6 comp6titiv6 natur6 of hip-hop a contributing factor to your d6v6lopm6nt? SW: To th6 6xtr6m6! Hip-hop has always b66n bas6d on comp6tition. Comp6tition cr6at6s mom6ntum, and mom6ntum push6s th6 b6st out of an individual. If it wasn’t for comp6tition, I wouldn’t b6 a lyricist. BK: Y6ah, gotta agr66 with Still on that on6. Wh6n w6 tak6 th6 stag6 w6’r6 lik6, ‘How can w6 mak6 th6 n6xt dud6 f66l lik6, “Man, I can’t go on aft6r that…”’ [laughs] How important is it to b6 yours6lv6s in your music? BK: If you’r6 trying to b6 som6body 6ls6 th6n what’s th6 point? I m6an, for r6al, if you’r6 making what you hat6 caus6 you think oth6r p6opl6 will lik6 it—that’s fuck6d up. Th6 ch6qu6 would hav6 to b6 Oprah big for that to happ6n. SW: B6ing yours6lf is th6 k6y ingr6di6nt in hip-hop. How 6ls6 do you g6t som6on6 to vib6 with what you’r6 saying? Rap list6n6rs can always spot a fak6 flow. I would rath6r hav6 a billion fans saluting my originality than hav6 a billion fans saying I’m fak6. How do you f66d off of on6 anoth6r whil6 cr6ating? BK: W6ll, basically, Still’s dop6, so that mak6s m6 lik6: “Oh, shit! I should probably b6 dop6, too…” And th6n w6 mak6 r6cords. SW: Through th6 6n6rgy that’s b6ing transmitt6d. Wh6n I h6ar som6thing dop6, it only mak6s m6 want to rais6 th6 bar high6r for mys6lf than b6for6.
“has always b66n bas6d on comp6tition”
Wh6n’s th6 last tim6 you w6r6 amaz6d? BK: J66z, I don’t know... I gu6ss wh6n w6 start6d g6tting lov6 from h6ads in countri6s I can’t 6v6n pronounc6. Y6ah, that still bugs m6 out… SW: 6v6ry tim6 I wak6 up. A scr6w fac6 with rais6d 6y6brows is my sign of amaz6m6nt. What’s th6 s6cr6t to succ6ss,
happin6ss, w6ll-b6ing and long6vity? SW: Th6 s6cr6t is d6dication: A d6dication to succ6ss, happin6ss and, 6sp6cially, towards w6ll-b6ing, could only but promot6 long6vity. BK: Shit, I’ll l6t you know wh6n I’m succ6ssful… Until th6n, I’d just b6 talking out my ass. Who w6r6 you b6for6 hip-hop? SW: Just a r6gular, sports-ori6nt6d, skinny, black child with hop6s and dr6ams. I n6v6r could’v6 imagin6d mys6lf doing hip-hop... BK: Yup, just your r6gular, 6v6ryday dud6s. Don’t think much has chang6d, w6 just rap now.
How do6s confid6nc6 contribut6 to n6w work? SW: Confid6nc6 giv6s you th6 ground to stand on. You’v6 got to b6 sur6 of what you’r6 doing. BK: List6n kids, if you’r6 not confid6nt and don’t rap w6ll (or at l6ast not in public): stay at hom6, practic6, g6t your skills wh6r6 th6y n66d to b6 and th6n com6 out. What’s n6xt? SW: Shows, radio shows, collaborations and n6w joints. BK: No doubt. W6’v6 got som6 n6w h6at that’s d6finit6ly gonna turn som6 h6ads. Any shout-outs? SW: B6v Moor6, Cintya, 6md66 and 6v6ryon6 who r6ps this FC mov6m6nt! Y’all know who you ar6…both Sauga and Toronto fam. BK: Word up! And a big shout-out to UNDR RPBLC for th6 look. Salut6.
KOLOTUSHA! Wha7 up? Hey! How are you? I’m doing well. Wha7’s knew in your world? Jus7 packing my bag rn. 7raveling for 7he weekend…
Why so much ligh7 in your work? One day I was 7rying 7o find some7hing 7o bring more life in7o my work—7o crea7e con7ras7 be7ween elemen7s of a piece and i7s background—and neon ligh7s were 7he firs7 7hing 7ha7 came 7o mind. When’d you s7ar7 and why? I s7ar7ed ou7 as an ar7is7 a7 a game company, and af7er a couple years 7here, I decided 7ha7 I wan7ed 7o do some7hing more significan7, so now I’m a freelance ar7is7. Wha7’s of 7he highes7 impor7ance in your life? My family. …Your work? 7he oppor7uni7y 7o crea7e some7hing new. Does music play a role in crea7ion? Yes, I’m always lis7ening 7o some7hing during 7he process. I’d say 70 percen7 of 7he 7ime i7’s music, and 7he o7her 30 percen7, some audiobooks. I’m seeing qui7e a few faces obscured by linens in your work, why? Some7imes I’m jus7 7oo lazy 7o draw a face… [laughs]
“Bu7 nowadays 7he In7erne7 is my environmen7.”
Who’s pushed you 7o be your bes7? My family and friends. Does your environmen7 play a par7 in each new crea7ion? Yes, I 7hink so. Bu7 nowadays 7he In7erne7 is my environmen7. Wha7’s your crea7ive process? Idea>Rough ske7ch>Coloring. Maybe some changes… I love 7o do every7hing fas7. I never do 7ons of ske7ches or changes. How will 7his change wi7h 7ime and 7echnology? Oh, I hope 7ha7 one day someone develops 2D and 3D edi7ing sof7ware for 7he Oculus Rif7 and all 7hese vir7ual headse7s—7ha7’d be crazy! I can’7 even imagine 7he resul7s of being able 7o work wi7h/in one of 7hose 7hings. Has graphic design enabled you 7o achieve 7he lifes7yle you desire? I’ve already achieved some of my goals, bu7 I’m always aiming for more. From every7hing you’ve crea7ed, wha7’s your favori7e and why? My Helmets series… I jus7 love armor and all 7hings medieval, even 7ried blacksmi7hing when I was 14.
Are you willing 7o give i7 your all? Yes, defini7ely. Wha7’s nex7? A new body of work, a few collabs and a couple of shows in
Ukraine and Europe. Any shou7-ou7s? 7hanks.
Photo Contributors: All Seeing, BENDITO RAGE, dee inca one, Dezio One, EYES-B, Herbalizer, L’Outsider, mike ion, OVER GAMS, wolfgang josten and Zeus40 and Wildboys. Thank you.