go beyond purist notions, step out on a limb. What you call fruitful contamination is our new frontier; this is where the most exciting work will come from. Besides, it’s just damn fun!There always seems to be a sense of narrative in your works, as the installation entitled XYZ, that has particularly impacted on me and on which I would like to spend some words: I would go as far as to state that there's such a subtle irony between the idea of danger suggested by the image of a lion in a room and the fact that it reminds more an innocuous toy than a wild feline... how much do you explicitly think of a narrative for your images?The XYZ exhibition was a collaboration with two other artists; Dolores Coe and Sheryl Haler. Coe is a painter and Haler a sculptor, she’s the one who created the fantastic animals that you see in the image. The installation creates a transmedia gathering of physical/visual icons, both real and invented, that speak to the human need to believe in something. The historical creation of systems of belief--stories, entities, objects, symbols and spaces that we create to comfort, validate, explain and connect is the starting point. ÜThe power of mystery and magic assigned these spirits to guide, heal, protect, enlighten and avenge provides the basis for this metaphorical space--with a contemporary take on navigating the landscape of belief. For my video ‘Believe’, I entered the word believe into twitter to see what came up. The text that scrolls along the bottom is all taken directly from that site. It shows the sharp contrast in how the word is used in our language. I gathered mostly found footage and audio taken from various places and pieced them together to show that there is a thread of commonality in our need to believe in something. The work of each artist really added another layer of meaning and broadened the conversation. It also offered the viewer different points of entry into the ideas. These two artists are also very good friends of mine so its a real pleasure when we have an opportunity to work together. Multidisciplinarity is so a crucial aspect of your approach and it's remarkable the way you are capable of creating such an effective symbiosis between elements from different techniques, manipulating language and recontextualizing images and concepts, as in the intersting SCHIZOFLORIDA: while crossing the borders of different artistic fields have you ever happened to realize that a synergy between different disciplines is the only way to achieve some results, to express some concepts?Schizoflorida was a collaborative installation with Sheryl Haler at the Brevard Museum of Art. Dee Hood Peripheral ARTeries
Peripheral ARTeries Dee Hood
14 artists were selected to depict Florida for a show called Navel Gazing. We decided to do a tongue in cheek presentation of Florida that addressed land development and the impact on the environment. The things that we think of as constant and basic to Florida will change irrevocably if we don’t address the precarious balance of man and nature. By injecting humor into the politics of population and land use we hoped to further conversations and actions to protect Florida’s environment. For this particular installation it was important to have a variety of media to express the ideas. We wanted to create a ‘ new world’ of garish wonder, so we really needed to go all out in every direction. Collaboration goes beyond what either artist can do individually. By combining strengths you have alarger repertoire to pull from and twice the creative energy. Your works are intrinsically connected with the chance of creating a deep interaction with your viewers, urging them to follow your process and pushing them to not play as a passive audience, and this is evident in particular, with Subaqua... By the way, although I'm aware that this might sound a bit naif, I have to admit that I'm sort of convinced that Art -especially nowadays- could play an effective role in sociopolitical questions:not only just by offering to people a generic platform for expression... I would go as far as to state that Art could even steer people's behaviour... what's your point about this? Does it sound a bit exaggerated?Yes, I agree that art can be a powerful sociopolitical tool. Whenever we encourage conversation about an issue, it benefits all of us. Actions start with conversations, so talking and listening are vital to the process of change. I’m very happy when a viewer or friend tells me that something I created made them think more about that issue. One woman got angry over the scrolling text in Believe, she thought some of it was crass. I explained where the text had come from and that it was a glimpse of our culture. The thingis, it made her uncomfortable, and that always makes us think and question. Dee Hood Peripheral ARTeries
You mentioned SubAqua, another collaborative installation with Sheryl Haler at the South Florida Museum. One video was projected over Haler’s wire mesh whales, bringing attention to environmental issues of water. The other video dealt with issues of water scarcity, drinking water conditions around the world, and privatization. We set the projectors low enough so children (and adults) could play in the projected images, they loved it!. Now, as usual, I would pose you some questions about your relation with your audience. During your career your works have been extensively exhibited in several occasions... It goes without saying that Peripheral ARTeries Dee Hood
feedbacks and especially awards are capable of supporting an artist: I was just wondering if an award -or just the expectation of positive feedback- could even influence the process of an artist... By the way, how much important is for you the feedback of your audience? I sometimes wonder if it could ever exist a genuine relationship between business and Art... Art is the way we communicate; we need feedback from the outside world to validate or disprove ideas. I have a sign on my mirror that says “don’t believeeverything you think”, we can all get into some dangerous loops if we’re not willing to open out to someone else. It’s also very gratifying to know thatsomeone has taken the time to view your work and tried to understand it. We all want to feel valued as humans, to know that what we do has meaning to others. I’m also open to criticism from people that I respect and I listen to what they have to say. Sometimes they can point to a disconnect in the intent and how the piece reads. I’m always trying to see the workas a viewer, but sometimes I’m too close to it. Awards are another type of feedback, another way of showing that your work has value. I feel very honored when I receive an award. It let’s me know that my work is current and can hold it’s place among other contemporary artists. It encourages me to keep pushing forward, to keep challenging myself. Thanks a lot for your time and for sharing your thoughts, Dee. Finally, would you like to tell us readers something about your future projects? How do you see your work evolving?Thanks for your insightful comments and I appreciate you choosing my work for inclusion in this issue of Peripheral ARTeries! I’ve been gathering some sound clips that talk about meaning for my next video. I’m not sure if it will remain on that course or veer off in another direction, but it’s the thing that’s nudging me right now. I would like to do more video installation work. Ilove the idea of filling a room with projections andhaving the viewer completely immersed. I would also like to try incorporating more interactive video in the future.
My work is defined in dualities. Often in an attempt to see and understand both sides of an issue or topic all the while exploring and forming my own opinions through a since of wander, wonder, and discovery. The topics are often rooted from a metaphysical state on a constant search an undying question of why and what makes up the world that surrounds us, in moments and spaces that are often taken for granted.The process by which it is created often takes a scientific approach, choosing a topic of study, determining a medium by which to represent it, and investigating the outcome through visual or sonic representation.Polymathic in nature my work embraces a multimedia approach that relishes the processes and techniques I've come to learn as a result of a combination of fine art and commercial art theory and practice with a fine attention to styling and detail derived from a fashion photography background. I've always wanted to be a teacher, a politician, physicist and astronaut. I figured becoming an artist was the career that would allow me to be allof them at once. (USA)PeripheralARTeriesAlexander Alexander IngramAn artist's statement
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PeripheralARTeriesAn interview withAlexander IngramAlexander Ingram's works are an effective combination of historical fragments and quotations, which gives life to an intense narrative that exhibits his own clear viewpoint. He provides the trappings for a world of creation and change, a symbolic realism that traces life as it is arranged and mechanised. In particular, his recent series entitled WXNDER, breaks open the photographic arrangement, engaging the static and passive observers, forcing them to actively follow his process. His multidisciplinary approach conveys the expressive potential of painting, photography as well as digital editing in a consistent and sometimes impetuous unity. So it's with a great pleasure that I'm introducing our readers to his multifaceted artistic production. Hello Alexander, and a warm welcome to Peripheral ARTeries. To start this interview I would like to ask you something about your background: you have a solid formal training and you hold a M.F.A. from the Pratt Institute, and I would like that you tell us readers how did this experience influenced you as an artist. Moreover, despite the in particular, despite success in your early career in commercial, you jetted back to the west coast in pursuit of the arts... what has lead you to this important choice?Hello! And let me start by saying I am honored to be mentioned in your series. This is a great question and probably the most important aspect I dwell on in my career as an artist. I entered the Pratt Institute directly aftermy undergraduate degree at 22 (for better or for worse) to pursue my MFaAin Digital Arts and as an opportunity to head to the big city and learn what it really meant to find myself and grow and mature to the man I am today. Coming from Temecula, California (recently voted the safest city in the U.S.) moving to Brooklyn was an immediate shell shock that I knew I wanted. it was could cold, harsh, beautiful, gritty, exciting and enticing. The Pratt Insitute had a plethora of amazing teachers who were there to constatnly make you question yourself, your opinions placing you in constant contact with other like minded strangers searching for answers in their own way. My pursuit in the arts however was blurred by the glitz and money of the fashion industry which I sought and thought at the time I wanted, starting with an internship at Art Partner with Mario Testino and ending with a job at IMG Models. While I was learning a lot about the business I ultimately had decided that I did not feel a connection with my position as a whole and yearned for a way out. Around that same time my father fell critically ill and allsigns lead to head west, reform my mind, thought process with an emphasis on love, family, and understanding the world around me in the best way I knew how - picking up a paintbrush, a camera, a pencil and let the world know how I felt.Before starting to elaborate about your production, would you like to tell to our readers something about your process and set up for making your works? In particular, what technical aspects do you mainly focus on your work? And how much preparation and time do you put in before and during the process of creating a piece? My process is intricate and often follows no particular pattern. Coming from a tactile and digital background often feel that the tool and method are less important that the medium and process itself and usually let the finished version come out in the way I feel it best be presented. Coming from an art background combined with an ad and fashion background I see the process as something more or less similar to how its formulated for a big shoot or
Barbara Bervoets Peripheral ARTeriesAlex is an artist and educator currently living and working in San Diego California. He works as a media educator for the non profit, Outside the Lens, which teaches students the importance of digital literacy, focusing on photography and videography. In addition to teaching, Alex also serves on several boards including the HCAN North County Arts Board, OTL Advisory Board, and Rising Arts Leaders and serves as an artist liaison at the Lux Institute. Prior positions include an extensive commercial background in art direction and production with Art Partner, Art and Commerce, and IMG Models in New York City as well as Trailer Park and Art Machine in Los Angeles. Alex holds a B.A. in Arts and Technology from California State University San Marcos and an M.F.A. in Digital Arts from the Pratt Institute as well as completing the CSU Summer Arts Residency in Fresno, California. In addition to teaching, Alex also creates and exhibits artwork in conjunction to his community efforts in which his work can be found exhibited throughout the United States, with a recent exhibition at the Brandon Gallery in San Diego, CA and a forthcoming exhibition slated for early 2015 at the Low Gallery.
an advertisement. It starts with an idea at root and to which I dwell on indefinitely. Then comes the search, constantly scanning conversations, stores, jotting and sketching ideas, photographing until the light bulb turns on. From there it is fully fleshed out as a finished work. Now let's focus on your artistic production: I would start from WXNDER, an extremely interestng project that our readers have Peripheral ARTeries Alexander Ingram
Alexander Ingram Peripheral ARTeriesalready started get to know in the introductory pages of this article: and I would suggest to visit your website directly at http://alexingrammedia.com in order to get a wider idea of your artistic production. In the meanwhile, would you tell us something about the genesis of this interesting project? What was your initial inspiration? The genesis of this piece honestly revolves around being back home. In returning to
California after 4 years in New York City I had realized how much I had changed and began to notice things about California that I had never noticed before or perhaps even took for granted. The warmth of the sun, the landscape, the ability to go to locations and reflect without the buzz of millions. I sought out to investigate those spaces alone and to my thoughts. I imagined myself to be a settler coming here for the first time and gathering items almost in a ritual like since to make since of the space around me. Through the photos I try to evoke the feelings I had at the time - at times lonely, others at peace, and others curious. I have appreciated the way you have investigated about the questions of Identity: in this sense, WXNDER offers such an Ariadne's thread that lead the viewers to evolve from a passive audience to an actively involved part of the piece of Art itself... so I would ask you if in your opinion personal Peripheral ARTeries Alexander Ingram
experience an absolutely indespensable part of a creative process, I mean both for conceiving a piece and for enjoying it... Do you think that a creative process could be disconnected from direct experience? Currently I think examineing my experiences is crucial to my art, both for me to make since of the world around me and to create a piece I feel is interesting and would be interesting to others. I do feel in the future though I would like to take an approach that leaves a much more abstract interpretation of such thoughts.Taking control and advantage of different and sometimes opposite techinques, your approach goes beyond the usual but artificial dichotomy between tradition and experimentation: in this sense, multidisciplinarity is a crucial aspect of your approach and it's remarkable the way you are capable of creating such an effective symbiosis between elements from different Alexander Ingram Peripheral ARTeries
Peripheral ARTeries Alexander Ingram Peripheral ARTeries
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techniques, manipulating language and recontextualizing images and concepts: while crossing the borders of different artistic fields have you ever happened to realize that a synergy between different disciplines is the only way to achieve some results, to express some concepts? The synegery between working from multiple perspectives and mediums is necessary for me. I consider myself a polymath and equally as skilled in photography as drawing, drawing to singing, playing music to designing. It all comes together full force and usually all of these aspects are explored to make a finished body of work.Working with companies such as Art Partner, Art and Commerce, and IMG Models you had the chance to get a great exposure into what you have defined as the thrilling, fast paced world of fashion and fashion photography. I have been particularly impressed with the way your shots avoided to focus on a merely decorative aspect and I daresay that your photographs seem to raise the question of the role allocated to the individual in a worldwide economic and cultural integration... Many contemporary photographers as Cindy Sherman and Ansel Peripheral ARTeries Alexander Ingram
Alexander Ingram
Adams have some form of political message in their works. Do you consider that your pieces are in a certain sense \"political\"or do you seek to maintain a neutral approach?My pieces are always in a since political. My background deeply alludes to my involvement in politics. Being the son of an African American father born in 1944 in the heart of Mississippi and a white german mother the opinions and way that I've seen the world has always been through two lenses and I often view things in a series of dualities. In my life and through my artwork I am often looking at the world through multiple perspectives and have the ability to find a way to blend into both sides of the conversations happening in the United States. That being said I am a very political person and while I don't intentionally try to add the politicsin my work I am more than certain that my viewpoints and opinions come out regardless. By the way, in these last years we have seen a great usage of digital technology, in order to achieve outcomes that was hard to get with traditional techniques: do your think that an excess of such techniques could lead to a betrayal of reality? By the way, have new Peripheral ARTeries Alexander Ingram
technologies as DSLR and digital editing impacted on your process?As I progressed through my BA studying Arts and Technology and my MFA in Digital Arts, the use of Digital became not only my main arsenal of tools but also my biggest challenge to use them effectively and efficiently. I think reality is becoming digital in some ways and in others becoming less. During Fergusson for example I was much more compelled by the videos I saw live from Vine of citizens actually there in the field rather than the narratives driven by the news. Ultimately I think I will always incorporate a digital aspect in my work however there is always a reason for it. And I'm not one to think that a more expensive camera or better editing software leads to a better project. Besides producing your stimulating artworks, you also work as a media educator for the non profit, Outside the Lens, a work that I personally consider a proud accomplishment: have you ever happened to draw inspiration from the works of your students? By the way, I sometimes I wonder if a certain kind of formal training could Alexander Ingram Peripheral ARTeries
Peripheral ARTeries Alexander Ingram
Alexander Ingram Peripheral ARTeries
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even stifle a young artist's creativity... what's your point? Hm thats a good question. In regards to working with Outside the Lens I am constantly inspired by the work of my students. Their viewpoints, perspectives and ability to find the details in things I overlook is the most incredible thing in the world to me. I'm actually working on a piece titled \"Never Grow Up\" inspired whole heartedly by the students I teach. I would love to share with your readers in the future. In regards to the formal training thats a good question. I would like to think that as an artist the training you receive isn't as formal as it may have been in the past. In digital professors aren't teaching you how to paint - they are more or less giving you a tool, letting you run rampant, and then asking you to explain what you did (often the hardest part for an artist). I'd like to think my method is similar, not to stifle creativity but to allow my students to elaborate on the whys as it relates to their art and themselves. Now let's deal about the relationship with your audience: during these years your works have been exhibited throughout the United States, with a recent exhibition at the Brandon Gallery in San Diego, CA... it goes without saying that positive feedback, although are not definitely indispensable, are capable of providing an artist of an important support. I sometimes wonder if the expectation of positive feedback- could even influence the process of an artist... By the way, how much important is for you the feedback of your audience? I sometimes wonder if it could ever exist a genuine relationship between business and Art... To be honest at this point I just want to make great work and if it sticks with my audience I am grateful and if it doesn't that is okay too. I try not to get hung up on these types of issues because at the end of the day my art is for me and while their are always some pieces that may resonate with a particular audience or demographic more than others my goal still lies in the expression. I think social media builds a strong relationship with the artist and its viewers. While some artists may be afraid to use it I embrace it. I can put my work up and instantly get critiqued or praised right then and there. It gives me a gauge of when Im onto something and when an ideas is tanking or misunderstood. Peripheral ARTeries
Thanks a lot for your time and for sharing your thoughts, Alexander. Finally, would you like to tell us readers something about your future projects? How do you see your work evolving?Currently I am working on a series of work shot primarily through the Iphone that depict the thoughts and emotions I have felt since childhood. I'm often reminded by those around how shocking it is that my thoughts and attitudes about the world around me has been so consistent to how I was as a child. (I must have been a very strange kid). But I see this in a good way and perhaps I had found myself before I even knew I had. In working with children as a teacher through the non profit Outside the Lens I am reminded each time I step into a classroom of children just like me, creative minded, shy, quiet, with a world of thoughts in their mind and allow them to articulate themselves through their creativity. Their creativity makes me a better person and a more creative minded individual. Peripheral ARTeries
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Sini MajuriGlass is as a magical medium to work with. If you don’t break it, it lasts for thousands of years. When you are working with it, you cannot touch it with your hands. You shape it with your breath. My goal is to exhibit glass art in uncommon places and especially to viewers who don’t spend time in glass art galleries.I blow my glass sculptures using a hundred years old swedish Graal-technique that allows to create images inside the layers of glass. The process offers both hectic days in the glass blowing studio and calm cold working periods. It is a rare, manual technique requiring many hours of work. Combining comic book art with graal glass is my passion.I want to bring something fresh and contemporary into Scandinavian glass art. While studying ceramics and glass design at Aalto University in Helsinki, glass quickly became an important medium for me. Maybe it’s because I see glass as a wild animal that you need to tame.PeripheralARTeries(Finland)An artist's statementMajuri Sini
PeripheralARTeriesAn interview withSini MajuriMajuri Sini's glass sculptures deserve a particular attention: while seducing the viewers with the plastic beauty of her creations, she introduce them in such a hidden dimension, halfway between Contemporary, from which she draws inspiration for imagery, and ancient Tradition, which provides her of the strengthened techniques with which she gives life to her glass shapes. When arranging such time heterotopias she investigated the surfaces that determine our perceptions of memory and time: so I'm really pleased to introduce our readers to her stimulating artistic production.Hello Sini, and welcome to Peripheral ARTeries. To start this interview would you like to tell us something about your background? In particular, how did your studies of ceramics and glass design at Aalto University in Helsinki influenced you as an artist and impacted on the way you conceive your artworks?Moikka Peripheral ARTeries! Thank you for choosing my work into your beautiful online magazine! I am very delightened for this great opportunity to introduce my art and modern Finnish glass design. My roots are in the countryside of Finland. I spent my childhood in Suonenjoki, a small town in Northern Savonia that is World famous for its annual Strawberry Festivals. I lived in an old farmhouse from the 19th century surrounded by strawberry fields and paddocks for horses. Our farm is by the lake with crystal clear water that you can even drink as such. The purity of my childhood landscapes still inspires me in my art.An interview by Dario Rutigliano, curator
Majuri Sini Peripheral ARTeries
Studies of ceramics and glass design influence my art in many different ways. For example I learned to blow glass in Aalto University and fell in love with this medium that acts like hot lava. But to be honest, my first day in glass studio was not very elegant. I spilled hot glass on top of a pair of gloves laying on a floor. They burst into flames and smoked like crazy! I stomped on them only melting a hole in to my shoe. After all this was a good lesson. I learned that glass is like a wild animal that you need to tame. If you don’t pay attention to it, it will escape. And blowing glass is like a dance. There are certain movements and angles that you need to imprint in to your neural memory. It’s a dance with fire.In Aalto University there is a possibility to use 3D printers, laser cutters and all the futuristic machines you can ever think of. I have always enjoyed combining 3D design with glass. So one of the influences that I got from the University is the 3D design combined with the techniques of mold making out of different materials such as plaster, wood, sand and graphite. In Aalto I also learned to make my own glass materials. I found Neodymium oxide that has interesting character on glass: it changes color in different lighting. Playing with Neodymium glass tests led me to invent a pattern on glass that is visible only in natural light and disappears in artificial light. After all I believe that the main influence from Aalto is the deep appreciation towards the master designers and tradition of glass.Peripheral ARTeries Sini Majuri
Sini Majuri Peripheral ARTeriesBefore starting to elaborate about your production, would you like to tell to our readers something about your process and set up for making your works? In particular, what technical aspects do you mainly focus on your work? And how much preparation and time do you put in before and during the process of creating a piece?The characteristic of glass has a lot to do with the lapse of time. It has a potential to last thousands of years when handled with care. But, it may shatter in a blink of an eye. Many of my works are stories captured inside the glass. They can be seen as fairytales or cartoons. So my design process usually begins with the creation of the storyline. For example I think about an interesting chain of events that could look cool on glass material. The logic of dreams and surrealism interest me. I get my inspiration from the city around me, from the streets of Helsinki and from the stories that I might hear in Metro or cafeteria. The storylines come together from bits and pieces that slowly evolve like songs or poems. This is the soul of the design process.One of my stories is about horses running in a forest. This is a memory from my childhood that evolved as a fairytale. The horses run between the trees and eventually chain up as a ring that keeps on running evermore. Actually this week the story about horses was exhibited in Finnish Glass Museum in Riihimäki as a part of Finnish Glass Lives 7 - exhibition.
I always start sketching my story in an old illustration book that I carry with me everywhere. So when we are looking at the time that is used for making one sculpture it is surprising how much preparation it takes before the actual hands on work phase with glassblowing. Designing a glass piece has many other dimensions as well. I usually use 3Dprogram to design the outer form of the piece so that the glass blowing mold can be made out of wood. Because I often use a lot of imagery it is good to have peaceful form that supports the images and gives space for storytelling.The technique that I’m using in my storyline works is called graal. Graal-technique is a hundred years old Swedish tradition that allows creating images inside the layers of glass. It takes several days to blow one piece and there are both hectic blowing days and calm cold working days in the process. The piece is made layer by layer like an onion.The set up of the glass studio is very important. As I sit on the glassblowing bench my tools are on the right hand side: jacks, tweezers, block and a newspaper. The newspaper sound like odd tool, but it is actually used for shaping the hot glass. Of course it needs to be a bit wet and folded in a special way. During the blowing it’s important to use black glasses. They look cool and protect eyes from UV-radiation and Peripheral ARTeries Sini MajuriPolar Night
shattered glass. The most important part of the set up is an old radio from the 80’s. It’s so old that you really need to know which buttons to turn and how to place the antenna. The setup of a glass studio is shorthanded if you don’t have music. After all, blowing glass is a dance.When the process has evolved into glassblowing phase, the time is more easily measured. The hot dance with glass must have a quick tempo ant rhythm. It takes about one week to make graal-sculpture from the scratch. The working process must be carefully planned so that the costs of glassblowing are maintained in a good level.Now let's focus on your artistic production: I would start from Polar Night that our readers have already started to admire in the introductory pages of this article: and I would suggest to visit your website directly at http://sinimajuri.com in order to get a wider idea of your artistic production. In the meanwhile, would you tell us something about the genesis of this interesting project? What was your initial inspiration?There are private and deep levels in Polar Night. For me this work represents the hope in the dark moments of live. I made it during the process of slowly losing my friend to ALS. So valuableness of time and feeling of letting go Sini Majuri Peripheral ARTeriesPolar Night
has been the origin of the sculpture. I used freeformed blown glass with Incalmo technique, metal and wood. I wanted to have materials that reflect light. Polar Night is one of my works that is very close to traditional Scandinavian design with simple form and neutral colors.As a natures phenomenon Polar Night is something that I use as an analogy for my starting point. I really experienced this darkness that got in to the core of a person during my years in Rovaniemi. It gets pitch black in the polar night: when the sun stays under the horizon the whole day, day after day. But there is never completely dark, because snow reflects the light that remains. When there is only a small amount of light, it becomes sacred. The light of the arctic Polar night is what I wanted to capture in my sculpture. The surface of the snow, the layers of the calm and silent winter landscape. Your imagery is rich of references to real life as well as from the Finnish tradition and I daresay that you offer such an Ariadne's thread that lead the viewers to evolve from a passive audience to an actively involved part of the piece of Art itself... so I would ask you if in your opinion personal experience an absolutely indispensable part of a creative process, I mean both for conceiving a piece and for enjoying it... Do you think that a creative process could be disconnected from direct experience?So is it possible to disconnect the creative process from the direct experience? When people stop and look at something, it takes them somewhere else. I see the personal experience as the main ingredient of art. Art is a vessel for an emotion, idea and experience to be transported through time and space. I hope that my stories evoke emotions and make the viewers gaze wander.I love traveling and the places I visit and people I meet influence my works. Specially the old habits and believes have always enthralled me. For example an old superstition lives from mouth to mouth in Finland. “If a bird knocks on a window, it brings news. If the bird flies inside the house, it brings a warning”. When I travelled in Mumbai India and met a Pārsī woman that told me about their ceremonies and the roles of animals in the process. Dogs and vultures have an important role in the Pārsī Peripheral ARTeries Sini Majuri
ceremony. The woman was very sad because there were no wild vultures left in Mumbai.These stories evolved into a fairytale with bird knocking on a window. The story combines dreams, superstitions and modern day dogmas together. But these building blocks only exist inside the creative process and as the actual object is made, the story evolves. The shape, the colors, the glass materials are all giving the story their own weight. The space that the work is exhibited and the light effects on the way the sculpture is viewed. Eventually the inner world of the viewer creates the experience. I hope that when people are looking at my story they all interpret it in their separate way.Sini Majuri Peripheral ARTeries
Another interesting project of yours that has particularly impacted on me and on which I would like to spend some words is entitled Tulintu, that you have created in collaboration with Ella Varvio... I do believe that interdisciplinary collaboration today is an ever growing force in Art and that that most exciting things happen when creative minds from different fields of practice meet and collaborate on a project... could you tell us something about these effective synergies? By the way, the artist Peter Tabor once said that \"collaboration is working together with another to create something as a synthesis of two practices, that alone one could not\": what's your point about this? Can you explain how your work demonstrates communication between two artists?The communication between us is smooth. We have travelled a long journey with many actionpacked twists. For example in Helsinki Comic Festival our glass sculptures were almost destroyed by two dogs that started to fight inside the exhibition. Actually I’m meeting Ella today as we plan our new exhibition at the end of 2015. Effective synergies create new possibilities and give strength. For example as we plan this joint exhibition, the collaboration brings real results. We can share tasks. One of us can concentrate on finding new channels for publication and funding as other of us is mapping out transportation and timetable. I could say that we have worked together so long that our minds are welded together. We have drunk hundreds af cups of coffee during our glassblowing days, so coffeemaker is a machine with an important role in creating effective synergies.Our collaboration began in an interesting setting. We both spent our summer 2013 in historic Glass Village of Nuutajärvi that used to manufacture colorful glass birds by Finnish glass designer Oiva Toikka. Glass has been made in Nuutajärvi longer than anywhere else in Finland, actually since 1793. Ella was documenting the hundreds of glass birds made in the old glass factory. I was blowing glass vases with glassblower Janne Rahunen in Nuutajärvi’s Tavastia. We made my “Bird series”, a set of vases that have birds from Kalevala. It was my graduation work for Aalto University’s Ceramic and glass studies. Ella used to visit us at the glass workshop and help Peripheral ARTeries Sini MajuriTulintu
photographing of the manufacturing process of the vases. We started to hang out more and realized that both of us were deeply interested in glass and have similar artistic goals. So we decided to combine our strength and create glass art together.The illustrations of Tulintu glass artworks were initially inspired by Slavic folklore The Firebird. We both created out own version of the story. The birthplace of the story was in beautiful Helsinki Comics Center that we spent our afternoons getting inspiration and of course, drinking more coffee. The works demonstrate the communication of two artists in a very quintessential way. Two interpretations of a same story meet each other and are binded Sini Majuri Peripheral ARTeries
together. Our first two Tulintu-exhibitions were opened in summer 2014 in Helsinki. In May 2015 we are going to attend at Toronto Comic Arts Festival with new set of glass sculptures. At the moment we are blowing our new pieces for the festival. It’s very fascinating to see that our Tulintu birds have wings to migrate such a long distances.What I first appreciated of your approach is the way you go beyond any artificial dichotomy between experimental Contemporariness and Tradition, taking control of an ancient technique and at the same time, drawing inspiration from a modern imagery, as in your Town series. It's absolutely remarkable the way you are capable of creating such symbiosis between elements from different eras, manipulating and re-contextualizing materials and concepts... Do you think that there still a contrast between Tradition and Contemporariness? And in particular, what are in your opinion the features that mark a work as a piece of Contemporary art?This is very interesting question. Contemporary art is living and breathing the time here and now. It’s constantly changing, directing towards the future. I see contemporary art as the medium to look at the time and to capture something inside the layers of material. On the other hand the field of glass art is saturated with tradition. The processes, techniques and tools are all looking almost the same as hundred years ago. Is there a contrast between tradition and contemporariness? Sure there is, but contrasts are interesting and they are also a way to create something completely new. Applying a traditional technique in a new context is always engrossing.When we are poring over the tradition of glass I actually heard an interesting thing about it last week when I was talking with an interesting scientist! He told me that glass could be seen as one of the most important key technologies of which the present day is scrambled. When printing was invented and reading became common people started to wear glasses. The lenses became necessary and as a result, telescopes and microscopes allowed scientific revolution! Now at this time the Internet is made of glass. Glass is involved in our Peripheral ARTeries Sini Majuri
Majuri Sini Peripheral ARTeries
technological tissue both historically and concretely. So there are always interesting connections between tradition and contemporariness!Timeless design has always interested me. I have been looking for ideas that look fresh not only today but also hundred years from now. I believe that storytelling is one way to approach timelessness. My Town series tells about a street in Helsinki that is always windy. In the sculptures I have used bright reds and yellows with black and white. I also wanted to play with transparency. You can see inside the layers of glass and trough the transparent parts of the sculpture and look for something hidden.Now let's deal about the relationship with your audience: as you have remarked once, one of your goals is to exhibit glass art in uncommon places and especially to viewers who don’t spend time in glass art galleries...So I would take this occasion to ask you if in your opinion Art -besides just describing and sometimes operating on perceptual processes, could in a certain influence them... or even steer people behavior: what's your point? Do you think it's just an exaggeration?I’m constantly looking for new forums for art. My goal is to introduce glass as a fresh medium and invite new groups of people to explore its beauty. For example the Comic Festivals in Peripheral ARTeries Sini Majuri
Majuri Sini Peripheral ARTeries
Helsinki and Toronto are these new, fun forums that give the ambience that I’m looking for. Also posting in social media (twitter, blogs etc.) is a good platform that throws open the vibes inside the hot glass studio and gives people an opportunity to have a peek inside design process. So do art influence people and steer their behavior? I feel that it is the basic functionof art. It ignites something primal inside us. For instance music makes people dance, a good comedy makes us laugh. Eventually, art can make us dream!By the way, during these years your works have been exhibited in several occasions and you have recently participated to the Taos Art Glass Invitational, an international biennial exhibition in Taos, New Mexico... it goes without saying that positive feedback, although are not definitely indispensable, are capable of providing an artist of an important support. I sometimes wonder if the expectation of positive feedback- could even influence the process of an artist... By the way, how much important is for you the feedback of your audience? I sometimes wonder if it could ever exist a genuine relationship between business and Art...The landscape in Taos is just unbelievable. The plain desert horizon is like from another planet. Taos Art Glass Invitational in New Mexico was a wonderful adventure and once in a lifetime opportunity to hurtle a silver Mustang along the historic Route 66.My works were - and actually still are - exhibited in David Anthony Fine Art Gallery where I also gave lectures about Finnish glass art. During my visit it was wonderful to blow glass in the middle of the town square, at the Taos Plaza. Hot glass was glowing bright orange when the night fell.The main part of the journey was to meet local glass artists and see their working studios and beautiful art. The first artist that I met was Ira Peripheral ARTeries Sini Majuri
Lujan, who organized the glassblowing demonstrations. He had built his movable glass studio himself and it was just awesome! And so was his artwork that mixed together tradition of the Native Americans and new vision. I had also a change to borrow sandblasting machine from Michael Miro’s studio. He was just finishing one of his elegant glass works inspired by Japanese culture. It was great to see a well-functioning cooperation between the artists. In Taos I experienced a genuine relationship between business and art when I met these inspiring entrepreneurs and saw them working together as a community. It has been encouraging to get good feedback and I’m happy to meet people who understand the value of art and who view glass art as a good investment.In order to gain the real relationship between artist and client it’s necessary to have direct contact between them. When my storyline works are exhibited, the story is awailable only at the time of the exhibition when people can experience it. Each of myworks has also an individual story and meaning that I would like to share. So it is always interesting to see the person who takes that story home.Thanks a lot for your time and for sharing your thoughts, Majuri. Finally, would you like to tell us readers something about your future projects? How do you see your work evolving?Thank you for the interview! It’s a pleasure to be apart of your wonderful publication with interesting views. Thinking about these questions was a journeyand really gave new ideas as a spin-off!In my future projects I’m working with a new glass blowing method that I invented fall 2014. It allows mirror like reflections inside the layers of glass. Something very dreamlike is about to be created with this technique. I’m working with a new storyline that I’m hoping to capture in glass. It’s about a woman that holds a wooden boat on her lap. She hops on and off she goes flying in the sky. I’m hoping to find a goodexhibition space for this new storyline. Some place with a dreamlike atmosphere.There will be also comic art exhibitions this year for example in Finnish Glass Museum and in Toronto Comic Arts Festival. Also, we are planning something cool in Leerdam, Netherlands for the end of 2015. So year 2015 will be so very exiting!
Peripheral ARTeries(United Kingdom)My main drive to make art is a pursuit of truth around how images function and exsist through a long line of experimentation. I am drawn to beauty and very interested in its construction and purpose from a cultural stand point. Collective notions of beauty and taste are shared and represented through a wide range of mediums over long periods of history. Even though beauty can sometimes be guilty of buying in to narcissism, what it has in common with the functionality of images is a high level of illusion, that depicts a world more seductive and appealing than our own. The tension between the sentiment the viewer experiences through their gaze and the reality of images is for the most part what my practise investigates. Images are very ephemeral things, put quite simply they are very sophisticated systems and signs that add to our culture. The intangibility of the digital images in a frame-less, free-flowing world has been a key aspect that I believe best represents their paradoxical state. Such ideas are well recognized and explored in Hans Belting's \"An Anthropology of Images\" and Vilem Flusser's \"Into the Universe of Technical Images\". I welcome intangibility and surrealism because they best mimics how we really think about images. When we loose contact with a physical copy or walk away from the screen, we hold what we have seen psychologically. Our body becomes a medium that stores what we are exposed to.An artist’s statementScott D'Arcy I reference and borrow a lot of content; this could be anything from aesthetics of certain styles to elements from famous historical paintings. For me appropriation is vital when trying to understand an images collective reading, and being able to set a certain appeal against itself in a very different way but still in a very visually way. The viewer then has an opportunity to really think about the new image with a new context.The creative process is not so separate from these ideas. I have a tendency to view the world as an infinite universe of visual references, that merge over one another. A great deal of time is spent scouting locations and building up an achieve or collection through a range of sources; locations, online images from facebook, books, old master paintings. In order to decide which visual engines will work together. Baroque No.7 - photogra