Open Lab

2011-08-05T20:23:00.000-07:00

$15.40 CLICK TO BUY!
8.25" x 10.75" • 72 pages • Perfect-bound
Interviews by Lori Zimmer
Design by Martina Micko

Featuring:
Cari Vuong,Jacob Dekat,Michael Keegan,Richard Mauger,Jennifer Davis,Delwin Kamara,Zarathusra James,Ripo,Martin Sobey,Mili Malinovic,& Masha Karpushina.

Preview

2010-08-04T06:04:00.000-07:00

ISSUE I VIEW IN FULL
See CONTENT

In this Issue

Jean Matos // Anne Sophie // Allison Sommers //Kris Knight // Rachel Hardwick // Naja Rosa Kimyon Huggins // Marco Candela-Michelus // Mili Malinovic // Don Brodie // Jens Herrndorff //Kwesi Abbensetts // Estudio Alba

2010-06-16T15:59:00.000-07:00

2010-06-11T00:02:00.000-07:00

Ehizoje by Delwin Kamara

2010-06-01T07:37:00.000-07:00

Yoko Ono: Walking On Thin Ice

2010-05-28T15:30:00.000-07:00

by Lori Zimmer

Death By Drone are a powerhouse of creativity, in the guise of two, tiny, sweet 24 year old ladies. Moving beyond the mega trend of the screen-printed t-shirt, Death by Drone adorns their whimsical narratives all over custom made, girly dresses. Their work tells stories of lovely ladies cavorting in forests and folklore, with candy thatched huts, strawberry short cakes, scottie dogs and balloons. All the things a girl loves…

Now working on their second Spring Collection, the girls have expanded beyond the dress, and have included t-shirts, totes and prints. I sat in Deb Kaplan and Tiffany Ang's shared home/studio in East Williamsburg, dying to find out more about the girls who are inspired by both unicorns and vomit.

Lori Zimmer: How did Death By Drone come about?
Death By Drone: We suppose that it all kind of started when we first met at school 5 years ago.We started to hang out and discover new things together and somewhere along theway we realized that we had a very similar peculiar sort of creative sense and thoughts. When we met we both already had the love for children's things and the cute and absurd and over time, they blossomed and turned in Death by Drone! Our senior year at Parsons is when we finally started the line. We were/are both very into psychedelic rock and the sound of drone and this is where our main inspiration and name grew from.
LZ: Are you both illustrators and seamstresses? Or do you each take one part of the project?†
DBD: We both do it all…we started out wanting to do design and then realized that we were also illustrators. We believe in the philosophy that artists should spread their talents across many disciplines and that is what we do. We each have our hands in all parts of Death by Drone, from concept development, illustration to photo-shoots, garment design and screen-printing.
†LZ: What inspires you?
DBD: oh so many things! Lately and increasingly so.. it's mainly been nature. We have been itching to leave Brooklyn and take trips upstate or California. We are planning a trip to the national parks this spring. There are lots of nature and organic themes in our illustrations--trees, vines, flowers, etc. It's just a very inherent part of us and our work.† We are always inspired by children's books and certain illustrators such as Henry Darger, Mary Blair, Tove Jannson, and Edward Gorey, amongst a whole other medley of authors, writers, artists, foodists, heroes, misanthropes..... larry david and leon. For the silhouettes of our clothing we take inspiration from vintage lady-like silhouettes, usually inspired by 1930's-1960's stuff...those women knew what was up.†And of course--our records and live shows! Psych rock music creates a sound that allows our brains to travel to those places where the stories we create can grow and where the characters live. haha..it all fits together…
†LZ: Your collections are whimsical narratives! How do you come up with the stories? Have you considered writing children’s books?
DBD: Of course, the music helps, and it's always some crazy story/film playing out live in our heads. They grow organically out of who we are and our past experiences. A lot of it relates to nostalgia from childhood and when we discuss our ideas or go freewheeling, more bizarre situations and stories emerge. We always think about writing books and that will definitely be coming in the future. We have some ideas relating to characters of ourselves with our pet stuffed dog Jacques and tons of berry jam. You can see our writing in the poems that go along with all of our dresses.
LZ: I love how your illustrations are juxtaposed onto frilly and girly frocks, what made you decide to incorporate dresses, rather than just traditional screen-printing on t-shirts for your collections?
DBD: Because if you can have that shit on a tee why not have it on a dress??! It just makes it a million times better...we love dresses. The market is loaded with millions of graphic tees already so we wanted to do something new. Illustrations on a tee are kind of just placed there, but with the dress all of the themes can be better incorporated. It comes down to an artistic and aesthetic vision really, and making a deeper, more dimensional connection to the wearer. A dress vs. a tee will further bring the wearer into that fantastical world.
LZ: what’s on your ipod when you're designing?
DBD: Mainly psych rock---13th Floor elevators, Dead Meadow, Sleepy Sun, The Black Angels, Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound, Brian Jonestown Massacre. Also, Sabbath and Zeppelin, bluesy stuff, heavier stuff, lighter stuff! and there's always good ole' Le Tigre... All of which will play some part one way or another, in our future short film!

†

LZ: Where can we buy your pieces? DBD: In small boutiques around NYC--such as Subdivision (L.I.C), A Tempo (Upper West side), and Legacy (Soho) and you can always email us to buy through our website:† www.deathbydrone.com † † LZ: What’s next for Death by Drone? (next collection theme or product etc?) DBD: Our next collection is on its way...look out for lots more crazy! Also, like we mentioned we'll be doing a short surreal film...

2010-05-27T20:17:00.001-07:00

The Raw Citizen
by Yemi Amu

RawCite Designs Inc. is the creative expression of Odhiambo Okeyo a.k.a. the RawCitizen. According to RawCitizen, the name and concept came to him as a totally finished concept, logo and all in an experience the artist describes as “the most clear thing I’ve ever experienced, it was like a true vision.”

RawCitizen recently partnered with The Garment Room in Soho for a week long graphic art exhibit titled Destroy Androids Rated X. I caught up with him at the exhibit to find out more about this New York City native born to Kenyan parents.

Yemi Amu: What is the evolution of the name RawCite?

Odhiambo Okeyo: RawCite was something that came to me when I was 21. I was always a creative kid, doing my own comics and characters since age 9. I was always into the arts. After high school, and some college, this vision came to me. It was a full definition, logo everything. It was like really the clearest thing I had ever experienced, it sort of began to define my life somewhat.

YA: What does it mean to be a RawCitizen?

OO: The concept of the RawCitizen is really to say you are a citizen of this “Raw” City. A city in which the boundaries that govern the world we know now, particularly in the Western understanding of what a city should be, do not exist. The RawCitizen is a free thinker. RawCite is a community of free thinkers focused on progress and finding alternative ways of how the citizen and the state relate - closer perhaps to the ways of indigenous cultures. It is also a very open kind of thing - free, creative and progressive.

YA: Tell us a little bit about the Destroy Androids Rated X collection. What message are you conveying to the audience?

OO: Destroy Androids, was the name of my last group of tees I did for RawCite the street wear line, and it sort of evolved into something else. Destroy Androids Rated X is kind of where I have reached creatively with the kind of messages I was putting in my clothing line. I kind of work in series and I reached a point where I felt that the concept in this series was something that needed to be displayed in a different medium to be given the proper presentation.

YA: Tell us about your street wear line?

OO: RawCite the street wear line is about five years old. It’s what I have always done besides some freelance and collaboration as a graphic designer and street wear designer. For me the culture of hip hop is one of my first loves, and spending a lot of my developing years in NYC, I was into PNB, 2 black guys, Headhunters, Echo… etc. These were some of the pioneering street wear labels of the 90’s. Also I loved how Stussy and freshjive, brought that surf and skate culture to the masses. I was inspired to do my version with my own message.

YA:What can we expect from RawCite in the future?

 OO: Well as far as Rawcite the street wear brand, I’m  really pushing collaboration with like-minded brands and/or individuals  doing small one offs or pairing a t-shirt with an accessory. I’m going  to stay away from doing another collection for a little bit. The  RawCitizen is working on a toy. I have a sick design that needs a home.  I also have a book I’m working on with one of my creative partners  Shakir. I want to start doing more work for different clients. I just  want to continue to learn, and perfect my style as well as keep growing  the RawCite Brand with a variance of different products within the  company - books, toys, skateboards whatever.

2010-05-24T10:17:00.000-07:00

Our lady of hope Kelis performing at Santos Party House. The singer performed some fan favorites as well as songs from her forthcoming album Flesh Tones.

Kelis- 4th of July

Kelis-22nd Century

2010-05-23T17:07:00.001-07:00

Issue II Preview I.

//Photographer//Edwin Flores//

Mode//Lisa Cady (Click)//

2010-03-25T07:34:00.001-07:00

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2010-03-25T07:21:00.000-07:00

Photography Mili Malinovic
Model Chloe @ Nisch Management

2010-03-25T07:11:00.000-07:00

2010-03-25T07:05:00.000-07:00

Naja Rosa doesn't need sequins or a rapping guest star. With her husky, seasoned voice and dusty, 60's Californian rock, she can do without a "Nipple-gate" or aimless tabloid fodder. Coming from a legacy of rock badass-ness (her parents formed the 60's soul-rock group, The Savage Rose), this Danish-born New York City-transplant makes music that rattles, wails and captivates.

Fresh off a stint at Copenhagen Fashion Week, the young rocker with an old soul gave us some time to interrogate her.

Who are your musical inspirations?

It's very hard for me to narrow it down, since I grew up with everything: classical, gypsy music, folk, soul, world, rock n' roll and so on. [Plus] I grew up in a family of musicians.

But some of my favorites are definitely: The Doors, Aretha Franklin, Jimi Hendrix, Jose Feliciano, Otis Redding, Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, The Rolling Stones, Lhasa De Sela, Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, and my parents group The Savage Rose, then there's traveling and people I meet. Influences never end...

Describe your album in 140 characters or less.

Songs from my life traveling on the road with music. Bluesy Rock & Roll with lots of stories. Listen to the music :)

What are the five essential things you would need to have on a desert island?

A piano, water, white wine, a lover and a boat.

If there was a biopic of your life, who would play you?

Juliette Lewis or my sister, Billie.

Your music sounds trippy (in a good way). What were you on when you were recording it?

I was in a room full of beautiful musicians. That's enough of a drug.

Who would you most like to duet with?

Mick Jagger, Jim Morrisson, Muddy Waters or my mom.

What is your stripper name (first street you lived on + name of first pet, in no particular order)?

The first street I lived on was a lil' bumpy road in Copenhagen, called Pumpehusvej. Now it's called "Thomas Koppel's Allé" ("Thomas Koppel's street") - named after my father.

My first pet... was Toesen, who was a little, tiny Shetland pony. She lived at the end of our street at the old mechanics; in between car wrecks, burning rubber, and oil. Then my sister kidnapped her and we broke into some abandoned buildings, also on the street, and started a child's Collective, with ponies, rabbits and goats. The children ran the place.

So [my name] would be Toesen Pumpehusvej. Very Danish and original, no? And to top it off it means "Girly Pump House!"

What’s your favorite thing to wear?

Colors, platforms, vintage

If you had to choose, who would you spend twenty-four hours in a locked room with: [Ex-Alaskan Governor and Vice Presidential Candidate] Sarah Palin or [Public Enemy rapper and T.V. personality] Flava Flave?

It may be fun with Flava Flave. We could have a freestyle battle or two. It would be tough in a locked room with Sarah Palin for twenty-four hours. I mean, what kind of conversation can you have with this woman? I would have to tell her a couple of truths or two.

What’s your favorite song off your album and why?

All the songs off the album are my favorite:) They each have their own story and significance, but "Mountain Of Love" I wrote after my father died. It definitely brings me to a special place.

What’s your secret plan for success (we promise not to tell)?

Well if it was a secret, I would never tell you right? I work all the time... and I live life with open eyes and mind! I take chances and I jump on travels. I compose, write songs and sing everywhere I can, including on trains, at parties 'till 7a.m. with whiskey in my hand, and then at big concert stages all over the world. I love to sing, and I mean everything I sing. Now where's my piano?

2010-03-25T06:54:00.000-07:00

Photography Delwin Kamara
Stylist: Jason Bui
Make up & Hair: Erica Maniscalco
Assistant Stylist: Jean Carlos Pina
Model: Antonio R.

2010-03-25T06:48:00.000-07:00

Photography Delwin Kamara
Models: Chiamaka Nwaizu, Greg Mason

2010-03-25T06:39:00.000-07:00

Photographer Kwesi Abbensetts
Fashion Editor Rowshana Jackson
Make Up Artist Hiroko Takada
Hair Stylist Gregory Alan for Redken
Asst Stylist Shakira Williford
Asst Stylist Angela Leslie
Model Stateena @ Code Modeling Agency NYC

2010-03-25T06:34:00.000-07:00

Photography: Estúdio Alba
Styling: Ander_ and Chico Marinho
model: Danton Torres

2010-03-25T06:28:00.000-07:00

Photographer:Jens Herrndorff

Styling:Jennifer Hahn

Hair & Make-up:Anja Fichtenmeyer

Janina Zais

Production: Lars Weber

Models: Sophie G. / placemodels.com

Philipp W. / placemodels.com

Martin R. / placemodels.com

Gerrit / Mega

2010-03-25T06:21:00.000-07:00

Photographer: Don Brodie
Wardrobe Stylist: Carrie Weidner
Make-up: Dominique "Niqo" Boyd
Hair: Megan Dixon
Model Elli Trier

2010-03-25T06:17:00.000-07:00

The Dancer

Empty Room and She Dances like I never seen....

Without Music on her own .

Background Laughs , My confused senses ,

I React to an Idea .

Outside the Moon She Dances

Like if the Instinct takes Her Soul ,

Outside the Moon She Dances...

Outside the Moon she Dances to the most beautiful Song,

Outside the Moon and she Dances....

To the rhythm of her own Heart.

Freedom Song

In This Prison World my freedom Song is You,
And The Universe Unfolds around Us

Over the Horizon of Your Eyes.
The Cloth of The Ghost of the Past falls
Leaving an Immaculate frame
While a Warm Wind Arises
Bringing no pain
Bringing no shame.

Higher and Higher we Fly,

Higher and Higher......

Close your Eyes.........
Can you feel it?
We are the Offspring of The Universe.

The Children...

By Marco Candela-Michelus

2010-03-25T06:12:00.000-07:00

Rachel Hardwick is a budding illustrator with aims of taking the fashion world by storm and bringing fashion illustration to the forefront of mainstream media. She is well on her way her work was featured on DAZEDDIGITAL.COM and we are betting we will see her work in many more publications in the near future.

What was the turning point in your life that lead you to become and illustrator?
I don't know if there was a specific point that led me to it - I've always been drawing, ever since I could hold a pencil. I didn't discover the niche of Fashion Illustration until I was about fifteen though. At this time I was just constantly drawing portraits of girls, but then I realised there was actually a name for the thing I loved to do.

How do you feel about the resurgence of fashion illustration in the mainstream print world for Ruben Toledo’s Nordstrom ads etc?
I love it. The great thing about illustration is that there are never any boundries - you can imagine something and it can happen, and I think imagination is what really keeps fashion moving. Amongst all the photography in fashion these days, it's always refreshing to see some good old-fashioned illustration cropping up again.

Where do you think fashion illustration is heading to in this decade? Where would you like to see it go?
Well, digital illustration is obviously being used a lot now. I can imagine people might start weaving it into photography more, although I do prefer it to be used more subtly, like that shoot for Mixte #62 featuring Tanya Dziahleva - it's so simple but so adorable. I'd love to start seeing more illustrative editorials in mainstream magazines.

Do wish you were born in 20’s- 60’2 when illustration was on the cover of every magazine (golden days of illustration)?
Very much so! Everything was so elegant back then.

Do you think technology has hinder or help the field of illustration?
I think it has helped it a great deal, in the sense that it gives illustrators a lot more scope and ease when it comes to their work. Then again, I'm not really a huge fan of heavily computer generated images - I definitely prefer to see good old drawing skills. My pet peeves hate is seeing CGI remakes of beautiful hand-drawn children's films or TV shows from years ago....it breaks my heart!

What are some of your goals and aspiration, or where would you like to see your work some day?
I'd love to just become known for my work, to see it on billboards or in magazines and become immersed in the industry. I don't want fame but I'd love success.

You have a sister that is also an artist, does she influence you to be a better artist. Or is there anything you learn from her.
Without a doubt. We're always sharing ideas, and have very similar tastes...I think she's probably the only person I can really discuss art with, on the same level. I'm extremely proud of her and her success, she's definitely taught me that if you have a dream you should chase it, and that anyone can make it if they work hard enough.

Coffee table book are very popular at the moment. Its seems like every few months you hear of as designer or an artist releasing one. Is it a goal of your to publish a coffee table book or a book containing a collection of your work?
I've never really considered it, perhaps I could in the future when I have a larger archive of work...it would depend on how many people would actually buy it!

What would you like someone to walk away with when they see your work? Or what emotion do you want to evoke?
I'm not sure, I think a lot of my work has a slightly dark edge to it...but I like to evoke feelings of peace and quiet, for some reason. I especially like my photographs to appear candid, as if I've caught the model off-guard or in an intimate moment. It seems my favourite shots tend to be the ones I didn't actually mean to take.

I know you are young and this might be too soon to ask. What would you like your legacy to be or how would you like to be remembered?
Oh, wow, I'm not quite sure. I think I'd like to be remembered as an artist I suppose, and one passionate about her work...if I can call it that. To me, it's not work, it's heaven...I get into a zone when i'm drawing and it's the most wonderful place to be.

2010-03-25T06:07:00.000-07:00

Toronto based artist Kris Knight paints deeply personal, haunting portraits. His sexuality and citizenship often come up when discussing his work, but there is much more there than just who he is. True, his androgynous characters, with their flawless skin and wispy mustaches, are meant to address sexuality and gender identity. And yes, his narratives take place in snowy forests, cabins and are flanked by plenty of the requisite fur coats and trim. But his characters are pallid and forlorn, and look you dead in the eye. Recalling Manet's "Olympia", the historical notion of the "gaze" is broken, with a confronting, or pleading stare. Each has the same cold, red nose- the artist's own, a clever signature throughout his work. His characters are familiar; they are you, they are me, but the nose is his.

Knight's work has been shown in Toronto at Katharine Mulherin Gallery and Miami's Scope Art Fair this past December. Knight's first Los Angeles show, "All Babes are Wolves" just closed as a part of "The Road Less Traveled" show in KMLA on January 17th. For "All Babes are Wolves," Knight has removed his rose cheeked characters from their settings, focusing on the portrait and the gaze. I talked to Knight, to find out if there was more to the man behind the "gay Canadian" paintings. There certainly is.

Lori Zimmer: Your pieces portray a character-based narrative. Are you the author of these narratives, or do you draw inspiration for literature, life, music etc?

Kris Knight: Evocative writers and lyricists always inspire me, and I unapologetically nick lines for my painting’s titles, but my narratives are rooted in my own personal stories. Even though I mostly paint real people I do see them as my characters and stage them within the narrative accordingly.

LZ: Your characters are pallid, gender-bending, and decidedly Canadian (or so you've said with all the fur and the snow). To me, they look like the kids I see everyday in my Brooklyn neighborhood. Is it important to you to have your pieces convey your sexuality and nationality? Or are you fine with (my) more anonymous interpretation?

KK: You are probably just seeing a lot of my friends who’ve got bored of Toronto and relocated to New York..but in all sincerity, although I don’t think of the audience when I paint, I hope my paintings don’t dictate anything singular. I paint who I deem as northern simply because I paint the majority of my images during the winter months and I am inspired by winter, but my characters could be anyone. I reference a lot of what is deemed Canadiana because I think it’s funny. Urban Canadians hate Canadiana. We have such an indefinite understanding of nationalism here that I like to mix these references into my paintings simply because my characters are pretty ambiguous themselves.

LZ: In All Babes are Wolves, you've removed your characters from the narrative surrounding (formerly a forest, a cabin, etc), and into a vapid studio setting. What was your inspiration for this?

KK: I haven’t shown in LA before, but I have been a big fan of the California art scene since I was a teenager, so I wanted to introduce my work with my best foot forward. Instead of starting a new thematic based series, I decided just to keep it simple and focus on the portrait. This way I could really concentrate on the emotional impact of the physiognomy of these characters and not rely on specific theme to tell the story. Stripping away the narrative also allowed me to focus on the process of painting. All Babes Are Wolves are my loosest and most textured paintings I have done to date. There wasn’t a lot of time to do that show so I really didn’t want to get consumed by layers. I think being driven by so much pressure to complete works on time allowed me have a bit more fun and loosen up with my brushstroke instead of hiding it.

LZ: I have to tell you, I think it is genius and admirable to give each of your characters your own nose as your signature. how did you come up with this idea?

KK: I’m pretty shy, an irrepressible blusher to say the least. I started off painting my family and cousins because I was most comfortable with them posing for me. We all kind of look the same. I’m from the country.

I paint the same nose because I want these paintings to be solely my images in the end. I change my themes often and see my series as chapters; the characters I paint though remain aesthetically consistent. I’m also inspired by historical portrait painters who would secretly paint themselves or clandestine messages into their commissions. I think it’s badass.

LZ: You've said (and it is obvious) that you are inspired by historical painters, are there any contemporary painters that you admire?

KK: Of course, I love the paintings by Canadian artists like Shelly Adler, Janet Werner, Ray Caesar and Shary Boyle. I also am a huge fan of American illustrative artists like Sylvia Ji and Audrey Kawasaki. And I cannot forget my good friend Barnaby Whitfield who I will be collaborating with on a project this spring. I’m a very fortunate to have a lot friends who are artists whose work, and work ethic I admire, I am always inspired by them most.

LZ: How do you work- is your studio in your apt, do you need to be removed from the work space?

KK: I work on deadline and do see painting as a job because it pays the bills, so I work best when I have a place to go to and really seclude myself into the work. I have had a lot of shitty studios over the years, but now I have been fortunate enough to lease a space in a historic lithographing factory that has been converted into an arts building. It’s old and beautiful and I think it’s haunted.

LZ: Are you continually painting, or do you focus on a body of work for a specific show/series?

KK: I’m always painting but I am always on a deadline, whether it’s for an exhibition, art fair, or commission. For exhibitions I prefer to map out a specific body of work just because I need to be really organized to make 10-15 paintings (that I like) and usually have 4-6 months as a timeline to complete them in. I am pretty hard on my work and destroy about half of it with my silent temper tantrums, so I need to be organized because although I paint all the time, and produce a lot, I the end I’m not that efficient. Having a specific series for each show allows me to have more control over production, so I know which sketch, turns into which photo shoot, turns into which painting.

LZ: What are you listening to when you paint?

KK: I like to listen to a lot of vivid lyricist when I paint; I like songs that are more about story telling than having hooks. Lately I have been designating each studio day to a single musician or band and playing their full discography from beginning to end. Sometimes it makes sense, sometimes it doesn’t. Like today is Mazzy Star/Hope Sandoval day because I’m freezing in my studio and need some aural warmth but yesterday was a Babes in Toyland/Katastrophy Wife day and I was painting the prettiest most delicate images I have ever painted to the aggressive, most raw albums that I own.

LZ: What if....As a child, you suffered a paralyzing disease that left your fingers working, but unable to grasp a paintbrush. What would you be doing now instead?

KK: I have worked in art galleries as well as restaurants for the majority of my life as a full time artist (by full time I mean full time painting workload with 1-2 part time jobs on the go as well). I started working in restaurants at the age of 14 and considered one day being a chef because my grandfather was a chef in the navy and my mother is a baker. If I couldn’t hold a paintbrush, I probably couldn’t hold a pan so let’s cut that option out. I’d say art dealer/curator because I’m attracted to the way art functions in the public as well as the market. And since I’ve been both a commercial dealer’s assistant and a public museum curator assistant I know that my fingers would be fine because that’s where assistants come in.

Check out Kris's work at http://www.krisknight.com

2010-03-25T06:03:00.000-07:00

Jean Matos is a Brazilian artist whose inspirations and influences are as beautifully crafted as his detailed illustrations. He jokes about sounding “too poetic,” but his world views are truly that of an artist who finds beauty in the minute details of life and appreciator of history. Gifted at both the narrative as well as finely executed control of color, Matos is an artist I look forward to seeing more of in the future.

Lori Zimmer: You take photographs and you draw, any other talents? Some of your drawings are very fashiony, do you design clothing as well?

Jean Matos: I wish I was a multimedia artist. I like trying different medias, but I focus myself on drawing and painting. Even though I love fashion and photography.

in 2006 I presented a clothing collection with two friends in the Brasilia¥s fashion week (CFW), which helped me learn more about how the fashion business works. Then I participated in two more fashion shows, and that was enough to understand that I wouldn’t dedicate myself entirely to this. It’s a really fast and crazy job.

I like to create things for myself... I'm always making something new to wear or use. Everything I make without any kind of pretention to sell, is much more consistent and pleasurable. Occasionally I design t-shirt graphics for some brands.

Fashion, I mean clothes design itself, is getting less interesting to me, I don't know. I think fashion as a cultural meaning, when put together with something else, like music, photography and art, is more fascinating, and that is what I look for in the fashion world.

LZ: I see a lot of influences in your work- from Schiele to fashion to historical portraiture, what would you say are your most important influences?

JM: I always say that everything I see around me influences me in a way... I¥m a very observant guy. I love to watch people especially when is possible to see their weaknesses. It¥s an honor when people see some Schiele influence in my drawings and paintings, his art is amazing. Indeed Schiele, such as Mucha and Bayros, are some of my favourite modern artists and they influences me the most.

I'm also a big fan of the Renaissance and Byzantine Art. Religious themes have recently appeared in my work somehow, it has delighted me very much.

LZ: Your coloring is impeccable- especially your fleshtones. Did you study painting and illustration, or are you self taught?

JM: Thanks a lot! Colors is something that worries me sometimes because most of what you feel when you see a artwork is caused by them. I feel I'm in a very washed tones moment, which for me feels like resting in peace. (laughs).

I had studied oil painting when I was a kid, I had classes for almost 5 years. When I was 16 I started to study more about figure drawing and the human body. But only when I got to the University of Industrial Design was I able to learn more about colors, compositions and how to deconstruct the human figure.

But, I don't know, I feel that almost everything comes spontaneously from combinations I see around me, like the first morning light coming through the windows of my bedroom painting my walls, Brasilia's sky (city I currently live in Brazil). For real, I'm not trying being poetic! (laughs) One crazy thing I love to do is close my eyes in a bright sunny day and open it really slow to see things in washed and diferent color tones.

LZ: Twins and triplets are a recurring theme in your work, as are kings and queens. What is the fascination?

JM: The obsession started when I was a kid and saw on TV the americans siamese twins Abby & Brittany Hensel. At that time the feeling was more of curiosity and wonder. Later I started to appreciate that as a diferent kind of beauty. What some people call human freaks I started to consider as fantastic beauty. In 2008 I explored it more for an exhibition. What fascinates me about kings and queens are just the ornated costumes.

LZ: Many of your figures have slumped shoulders. Is there a significance with this posture?

JM: Maybe. This is a kind of weak and fragile posture. Everyone is so fragile, even when we look strong and brave. When nobody is seeing us, we let our shoulders slump and think about life, fears, hopes... I don¥t know. Perfect characters are really boring.

LZ: Tell me about your creative process- what are you listening to? Where do you create?

JM: My creative process can start anywhere. I think about everything all the time, in a bad and good way. In the middle of a bunch of good and bad thought comes an image, a scene or a phrase. When an idea comes to mind I start drawing, usually at home alone... listening to tv.

Music is something that inspires my state of spirit and creativity. I get inspired a lot with music. Lately I'm listening to Al Bowlly, Animal Collective, Deerhunter, Ponytail, Magic Wand and some LSTN albums. (laughs)

LZ: What projects do you have coming up?

JM: Talking about personal things, now I¥m creating a collection of T-shirts and flags and thinking about a next exhibition with structures made of paper and plaster.

LZ: If you weren't creating art, what would Jean Matos be doing?

JM: Anything but playing soccer! As long as I’m living. I feel very blessed for being able to create art and having it recognized by people who share this same interest. I'm happy that’s how things are!

2010-03-25T05:58:00.000-07:00

Anne Sofie is a fashion designer from Denmark with an incredible talent to combine the old with the new. Her remarkable designs have caught the eye of Open Lab and has earned her a spot in London's fashion week, a mere stepping stone on her journey to the top of the mountain. Although fashion was not her first love it seems as though they go quite well together. Blending the worlds of primitive and civilized, exotic and classic, barbaric and elegant is effortless for her.

Vincent Moulden: Did you always know that you wanted to do this?

Anne Sofie: No, I still haven’t made up my mind. For a long time I wanted to be a cartoonist.

VM: What is your educational background?

AS: First animation, then fashion, then production design and animation and then fashion again.

VM: What is the inspiration behind your designs?

AS: Animism

VM: What did you find to be the hardest thing when trying to combine the two worlds of Maori art and classic European clothing?

AS: It was not hard at all.

VM: What message do you want people to take from your designs?

AS: Ask me again in 20 years ;0)

VM: In terms of art, do you feel there is a difference between civilized and primitive?

AS: This is a very interesting question… Well, often primitive art has a practical and profane purpose and at the same time it contains some sort of magic power or mana. I like the thought that everything manmade encapsulates a soul.

VM: What do you want to be most remembered for?

AS: Kindness.

2010-03-25T05:52:00.000-07:00

Imagine a world where grotesque can be adorable. This is the world of Allison Sommers' paintings. Her freaks, monsters and evil cats make the monster under the bed seem kinda cute. Even if they do eat babies. Based out of Virginia, and soon to be New York, Allisons tiny paintings can be found at LA's Thinkspace Gallery.

Lori Zimmer: How did you get into illustrating? Is it your full time gig?

Allison Sommers: I just paint, basically, and over the years the painting part of my life has started elbowing out the obligatory day-job part of my life. I'm still working full-time as an art director alongside my art-work.

LZ: I noticed that you work on a very small scale- do you plan to work on larger pieces, or is this your signature?

AS: I'm on a slow process of opening my sizes and compositions up a bit, because as much as I love the small size, and as much of an intimacy it creates with the viewer, it can be limiting and get a little stale. Working larger (and it's only by a few inches larger, really) requires me to rethink the whole process, start to finish, so it's a slow progression. I'll always return to teeny-tiny detail painting, even if it's only a "moment" within a larger painting, because I love the indulgence of really losing yourself in a different scale.

LZ: Tell me about your characters. They are monsters that appear to be both grotesque and delicate at the same time, a fine, and interesting balance.

AS: Sometimes I think I'm character-building in the way that one does for a long narrative, except each painting is a new or revised sketch. I suppose I like to relate to them a bit, make their forms and personalities interesting, but I always end up wanting them to do naughty things and be a little terrifying, sort of when you made your dolls have (un-genitaled, mashed-together) 'sex' as a child. I don't trust them, any of them, with the exception of perhaps the large, sad beasts, but they're usually goners in the paintings anyway.

LZ: Rudi Cats??

AS: They were born out of two things: a. cats give me the creeps, and b. they're terribly interesting to draw. So I came up with the Rudi Cats, which are even more blank-eyed, slinky, bony, and creepy than the average cat is to me. They're depraved, and brainless, and eerie to me, though since they resemble a creature that many folks love dearly perhaps the effect is only in my mind.

-LZ:What is your typical working style (What are you listening to? Where is your studio?)

AS: I have a studio conveniently in my apartment, which is where I am holed up nearly every waking moment I'm not at my day job. I listen to a lot of podcasts and music-- a lot of jazz and noisy electric things for sketching, fun nostalgic things to sing along to like the Pet Shop Boys, strange songbirds like Joanna Newsom and Bjork, fast Balkan-y music and hip-hop when I'm antsy. A bit of pop when no one's looking. And in the last hours of a painting, when it's not the brain power but the tedious last touches that are needed, I watch things on my computer. I'm slowly rotting my brain with procedurals.

LZ: How the heck did you come about getting a hedgehog? It seems very fitting for your work that you should have one as a pet!

AS: I think the same thing that appeals to me about my creatures appeals to me about hedgehogs-- they're terribly cute in their own way, but also terribly strange-- they "annoint" themselves with foam, they're sensitive to barometric pressure and occasionally just go a little nutty, they roll up in a ball if they meet someone they don't like. And while Americans don't have a tradition, or nostalgia about them, there are lots of neat old world stories about hedgehogs, they're quite beloved....

LZ: Name five things that inspire you

AS: the beautiful insides of bodies

elephant shrew nose-twitchings, star-nosed moles

moss and mushrooms good enough to eat

tales of poisonings

tschotchkes

LZ: Who are your favorite artists (living, dead, whatever)

AS: I'll name three, since I could name until my fingers fall off. Rackham, Beuys, Mary Blair.

LZ: If you weren't making art, what would you be doing?

AS: As a lifestyle--? I seriously have no idea. I don't think I could pull that part of me out without killing the host.

- How did you get into illustrating? Is it your full time gig?

I just paint, basically, and over the years the painting part of my life has started elbowing out the obligatory day-job part of my life. I'm still working full-time as an art director alongside my art-work.

-I noticed that you work on a very small scale- do you plan to work on larger pieces, or is this your signature?

I'm on a slow process of opening my sizes and compositions up a bit, because as much as I love the small size, and as much of an intimacy it creates with the viewer, it can be limiting and get a little stale. Working larger (and it's only by a few inches larger, really) requires me to rethink the whole process, start to finish, so it's a slow progression. I'll always return to teeny-tiny detail painting, even if it's only a "moment" within a larger painting, because I love the indulgence of really losing yourself in a different scale.

-Tell me about your characters. They are monsters that appear to be both grotesque and delicate at the same time, a fine, and interesting balance.

Sometimes I think I'm character-building in the way that one does for a long narrative, except each painting is a new or revised sketch. I suppose I like to relate to them a bit, make their forms and personalities interesting, but I always end up wanting them to do naughty things and be a little terrifying, sort of when you made your dolls have (un-genitaled, mashed-together) 'sex' as a child. I don't trust them, any of them, with the exception of perhaps the large, sad beasts, but they're usually goners in the paintings anyway.

-Rudi Cats??

They were born out of two things: a. cats give me the creeps, and b. they're terribly interesting to draw. So I came up with the Rudi Cats, which are even more blank-eyed, slinky, bony, and creepy than the average cat is to me. They're depraved, and brainless, and eerie to me, though since they resemble a creature that many folks love dearly perhaps the effect is only in my mind.

- What is your typical working style (What are you listening to? Where is your studio?)

I have a studio conveniently in my apartment, which is where I am holed up nearly every waking moment I'm not at my day job. I listen to a lot of podcasts and music-- a lot of jazz and noisy electric things for sketching, fun nostalgic things to sing along to like the Pet Shop Boys, strange songbirds like Joanna Newsom and Bjork, fast Balkan-y music and hip-hop when I'm antsy. A bit of pop when no one's looking. And in the last hours of a painting, when it's not the brain power but the tedious last touches that are needed, I watch things on my computer. I'm slowly rotting my brain with procedurals.

- How the heck did you come about getting a hedgehog? It seems very fitting for your work that you should have one as a pet!

I think the same thing that appeals to me about my creatures appeals to me about hedgehogs-- they're terribly cute in their own way, but also terribly strange-- they "annoint" themselves with foam, they're sensitive to barometric pressure and occasionally just go a little nutty, they roll up in a ball if they meet someone they don't like. And while Americans don't have a tradition, or nostalgia about them, there are lots of neat old world stories about hedgehogs, they're quite beloved....

- Name five things that inspire you

the beautiful insides of bodies

elephant shrew nose-twitchings, star-nosed moles

moss and mushrooms good enough to eat

tales of poisonings

tschotchkes

- Who are your favorite artists (living, dead, whatever)

I'll name three, since I could name until my fingers fall off. Rackham, Beuys, Mary Blair.

- If you weren't making art, what would you be doing?

As a lifestyle--? I seriously have no idea. I don't think I could pull that part of me out without killing the host.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/on_a_boutade/

2010-03-25T05:05:00.000-07:00

OPEN LAB magazine N°1 March 2010

View

Cover

Chloe @ Nisch Management by Mili Malinovic/ Illustration by Anne Sofie. Cover Design by Bryan Collins.

Interviews

Jean Matos by Lori Zimmer

Anne Sophie by Vincent Moulden

Allison Sommers by Lori Zimmer

Kris Knight by Lori Zimmer

Rachel Hardwick by Trevon Beharry

Naja Rosa by David Morgan

Kimyon Huggins by Yemi Amu

Art

Jean Matos . Anne Sophie . Allison Sommers . Kris Knight . Rachel Hardwick

Music

Naja Rosa by David Morgan, Photographed by Delwin Kamara. Kimyon Huggins by Yemi Amu, photographed by Aki Baker.

Poetry

Freedom Song by Marco Candela-Michelus

The Dancer by Marco Candela-Michelus

Fashion Editorials

Galatea by Mili Malinovic

The Exodus by Delwin Kamara

Vertebrae by Vertebrae by Don Brodie

The Future Lives from the Spirits of the Past by Jens Herrndorff

The Lake by Delwin Kamara

Renegade by Kwesi Abbensetts

Afraid of the Lights by Estudio Alba

2010-03-22T07:22:00.001-07:00

2010-02-12T14:39:00.001-08:00

2010-02-02T09:43:00.001-08:00

See Like Me
http://www.seelike.me/post/281181375/open-lab
Hop on the Spiral Bitch
http://rydye.thepop.com/2009/12/22/open-lab/
Creative Boys Club
http://www.creativeboysclub.com/open-lab-magazine
P.O.P WORLD
http://tags.thepop.com/page/27/

Past Issue

2010-02-01T19:52:00.001-08:00

____________________________________________

Wanderlust
The Introductory (Pilot) Issue
View Issue

2010-02-01T19:52:00.000-08:00

View in Flash

IN THIS ISSUE

jean matos // annie sofie // kimyon huggins // naja rosa // don brodie // rachel hardwick // Marco Candela-Michelus // allison sommers // jens herrndoff // kris knight // mili malinovic // estudio alba // Kwesi Abbensetts

2010-02-01T15:31:00.001-08:00

2010-02-01T15:17:00.001-08:00

All general inquiries including inquiries about advertising and submissions:
INQUIRE@OPENLABMAGAZINE.COM

Editor-in-Chief/
Creative Director
Delwin Kamara
delwin@openlabmagazine.com

Art Editor
Lori Zimmer
lori@openlabmagazine.com

Staff Writers
David Morgan
Trevon Beharry
Vincent Moulden
Yemi Amu

2010-02-01T15:03:00.000-08:00

Open Lab is a platform for creative expressions. We are young, expressive, rich, and explosive. We plan to feature cutting edge art and photography as well as thought provoking articles and poetry from all over the world. Our goal is to ignite creativity in others by providing a dialogue between the artist and his craft.

CONTACT

All general inquiries including inquiries about advertising and submissions:
INQUIRE@OPENLABMAGAZINE.COM

2009-08-13T00:50:00.000-07:00

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