2 Special Issue Tanya Bub ART Habens video, 2013 024
ART Habens Jordi Rosado Special Issue 403
Tanya Bub Tanya Bub Hello Tanya and welcome to ART Habens. Before starting to elaborate about your artistic production we would like to invite our readers to visit https://tanyabub.myportfolio.com and we would start this interview with a couple of questions about your background. You have a solid formal training: you hold degrees in Philosophy of Science from McGill University and Fine Arts from the Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver: how did experiences influence your evolution as an artist? Moreover, how does your cultural background due to your 20-year career as a computer programmer direct your current artistic research? Tanya Bub: There is certainly an undercurrent that unifies my approach to art, programming and science. For example both philosophy of science books which I co-authored with my dad, one on relativity and one on quantum mechanics, begin with a simple premise and extend from there by way of small logical steps, gradually building complexity to reveal surprising features of the structure of the universe. My sculptures also all begin in the most basic way, by combining one piece of wood with a second. Then another is added and another, eventually resulting in an intricate form made up of sometimes hundreds of different pieces of driftwood, that also tell a unified story. Even the most sophisticated computer program is an ordered assembly of fundamental building blocks. I am fascinated by the way complexity arises by combining elementary components. The body of works that we have selected for this special edition of ART Habens has at once 404 Special Issue An interview by , curator and curator captured our attention for the way it highlights the uniqueness of human experience: when walking our readers through your usual setup and process, would you tell us how do you develop your initial ideas? Tanya Bub: People connect with other people and even animals by means of eye contact. In my work I strive to create a meaningful
Special Issue 24053 relationship between ourselves and nature by exploiting this aspect of human psychology. I usually begin with and spend the most time working on my character's eyes and facial expressions so that ideally, viewers respond to my sculptures almost as they would to real people or animals. When that happens, a personal and even emotional bond is made not only between the viewer and the depicted character but also with the natural material from which the piece is made. The roots and bark are bone and sinew. The evident life force in the branch that had to twist and turn to grow around an obstacle gives its energy to the twisted spine it has become. Personifying nature creates a deep empathy between ourselves and natural world, making visceral the fact that we are one with the environment. Contemporary practice has forged a new concept of art making involving such a wide and once unthinkable variety of materials and objects, and as you have remarked in your artist's statement, every piece of driftwood contains the unique and secret story of its origins and journey in its curves, colors and contours. In photographer and sculptor Zoe Leonard once stated, "the objects that we leave behind hold the marks and the sign of our use: like archeological findings, they reveal so much about us": could you tell us something about your interest in found objects? Tanya Bub: Working with found objects, be they human-made or crafted by nature, brings their narrative into the story I create with my art, thereby introducing layers of depth. The aesthetic experience, that breathtaking synthesis of knowledge, emotion, memory and sensory perception, is heightened by the often subliminal response we have to all the components that make up a work of art. Each ART Habens Tanya Bub
24061 Special Issue Tanya Bub ART Habens
ART Habens Tanya Bub Special Issue 24073
ART Habens 24081 Special Issue of the discrete elements I incorporate into my work have a voice and contribute to the richness of the viewer's experience. As you have remarked in your artist's statement, the transformation from a collection of lots of pieces of driftwood into a distinctive portrait involves an iterative process of combining and interlocking the found-wood until a "person" emerges, as if from a puzzle: we would like to ask you if you create your works gesturally, instinctively. In particular, how do you consider the role of chance and improvisation playing within your creative process? There are effectively an infinite number of ways a collection of driftwood can be combined to create a sculpture. This type of open ended "puzzle" is far too difficult a task for the conscious mind, which I playfully refer to as "little brain". Little brain likes to plan out solutions to finite problems and will tend to hold on to a particular set of preconceived ideas regarding the appropriate shape of a piece of wood that will extend the sculpture. This is often a lost cause as such pieces of wood may or may not be in the collection I have at hand. The unconscious mind, "big brain", doesn't work in this linear way. It is the master of chance,chaos and improvisation and will often produce surprising solutions to problems working with what is at hand. In concrete terms, imagine I am making a face and consciously seeking a piece that looks like a nose. I may then limit myself to small more or less triangular pieces. The more holistic subconscious brain may instead find a large gnarly twisted branch that wraps around to form a neck, curls into an implied ear, offers the hint pf a nostril before Tanya Bub
24101 Special Issue ending in a wild tendril of hair. This not takes inspiration from what is available but makes for a more interesting nose and adds dynamism and physical strength to the sculpture. I find that keeping little brain busy while I work, usually by talking on the phone to a friend, allows big brain to take center stage to get the hard work done! Tanya Bub ART Habens
Special Issue 24113 It's important to remark that you use non-toxic adhesive and varnish: how important is for you to raise awareness to environmental issues in the viewers? Tanya Bub: Some eco-artists use their work to explicitly draw attention to specific environmental issue like climate change or plastics in the ocean. Instead I hope to raise ART Habens Tanya Bub
24121 Special Issue awareness of the importance of our environment by drawing attention to the the power and beauty of ordinary natural objects by putting them before the public eye in the form of art. It is my hope that my work will serve as a gentle reminder of both value of nature and the fact that we are not so much stewards of the environment as a mere facet of it. Tanya Bub ART Habens
Special Issue 2413 We really appreciate such stunning organic quality of your artworks. French Impressionist painter Edgar Degas once remarked that Art is not what you see, but what you make others see: how would you consider the degree of openess of the messages that you convey in your creations and how open would you like your works to be understood? Are you ART Habens Tanya Bub
24141 Special Issue particularly interested in arousing emotions that goes beyond the realm of visual perception? Tanya Bub: Yes, and I would even take that a steps further! The final work of art is not only "what you make others see", it also involves the artist seeing what others see, which then completes the piece and informs future work. In Tanya Bub ART Habens
Special Issue 24153 art everything is important. The material, the social, economic, geographic, historical context, placement, location, audience response, everything comes into play. The physical artifacts is the mere tip of the iceberg to the largely psychological phenomenon that is art. We sometimes tend to forget that a work of art is a physical artefact with tactile qualities, and we ART Habens Tanya Bub
24161 Special Issue really appreciate the way your artistic production reflects this aspect: how important is for you to highlight the physical aspect of your artworks? Tanya Bub: Physicality is essential to my work. The sculptures create an almost unsettling connection between wood, bone, skin and sinew. So much so that people sometime find is slightly disturbing to look at driftwood! They Tanya Bub ART Habens
Special Issue 24173 know they are looking at roots and sticks, yet the also see the fur, skeleton, joints and flexing muscles of a seemingly living creature that is making eye contact. It is this juxtaposition that makes the sculptures exciting. Your artistic production also reflects your unique exploration of our relationship with our ART Habens Tanya Bub
Special Issue surroundings. Scottish artist Peter Doig once remarked that even the most realistic works of art are derived more from within the head than from what's out there in front of us, how do you consider the relationship between reality and imagination, playing within your artistic production? Tanya Bub: One of my most popular sculptures is a simple driftwood cougar that I placed somewhat hidden in a tree by the sidewalk in front of my house. That piece triggers an instinctive 'cougar in tree' adrenaline reaction when people walking by first see it at a glance. The initial shock translates into humor once people realize it's a sculpture. I love that element of fun and surprise. The success of the piece comes not only from it's integration with nature -- the cougar pulls the tree and 19243 ART Habens Tanya Bub PREVIEW
24201 Special Issue surroundings into the sculpture -- but also from the passerby who inadvertently momentarily become the cougar's prey, if only in their imagination. I see my work as essentially psychological. I use driftwood to create ideas, emotions and connections in people's minds. You are an established artist and over the years you works have been showcased in several occasions: how do you consider the nature of your relationship with your audience? By the way, as the move of Art from traditional gallery spaces, to street and especially to the online realm — as Instagram — increases: how would in your opinion change the relationship with a globalised audience? Tanya Bub: I see my audience and their responses as an integral part of my work. I'd Tanya Bub ART Habens PREVIEW
Summer 2015 2413 love to exhibit in far away venues to share my sculptures with people who have different perspectives. I think the element of wonder and surprise would only be heightened by the "exotic" nature of the materials i use which are somewhat familiar here. My work is constantly evolving so please follow me on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/victoriadrifter) to see what's new and don't hesitate to get in touch to inquire about commissions, installations and exhibitions. I am always open to exciting proposals! We have really appreciated the originality of your artistic production and before leaving this stimulating conversation we would like to thank you for chatting with us and for sharing your thoughts, Tanya. What projects are you Special Issue ART Habens Tanya Bub
24221 Special Issue currently working on, and what are some of the ideas that you hope to explore in the future? Tanya Bub: My next exhibition will be solo show in May at the Gage Gallery in Victoria which will be a playful but serious exploration of art and what our relationship to art can says about what it means to be human. The tongue in cheek name is "Art for Dogs and the People Who Love Them". Please do come and make sure to bring your dog! Tanya Bub ART Habens An interview by , curator and curator
Special Issue 4012 Irina Bula was born on April 14th, 1970 in Riga. In 1994 she was graduated from the Latvian Academy of Arts with a Degree in painting and sculpture.She took an active part in the exhibitions of main Galleries of Riga, such as «Center», «Daugava» and «Riga». She collaborated also with the American Art company and made the decorative sculptures for the «Vatican», «White house» and museums. In 1998, she emigrates to Luxembourg where she continues her active work both as a teacher of Arts in the Russian and English schools (sculpture and painting) and as an independent artist.
2 Special Issue Irina Bula ART Habens video, 2013 024
ART Habens Jordi Rosado Special Issue 403
Irina Bula Irina Bula We are particularly proud to introduce our readers to Irina Bula's artistic production: through her eyes the viewers are walked into an immersive, emphatic and uniting experience, that unveils the bridge between all of us. Hello Irina and welcome to ART Habens. Before starting to elaborate about your artistic production, would you tell us if there are any experiences that did influence your evolution as an artist? Moreover, how does your cultural background direct your current artistic research? Irina Bula: I have been interested in Art since childhood and entered the Latvian Academy of Arts to study sculpture. Thanks to remarkable professors, I received a noble education in the various techniques of sculpture, such as embossing copper, processing stone, bronze, wood. It was a combination of professional skills and humanitarian learning: Art history, philosophy, sociology, drafting, physiology. On my initiative, I also took oil painting classes in parallel. At that time, I got classical training in visual arts and knowledge of contemporary styles and ultra modern trends. I admired the art of virtuous Italian Renaissance masters such as Michelangelo and also masters of the 20th century as Bourdelle and Maillol with their expressive and sensual rendering of massive shapes. I liked the landscapes of the French impressionists and the modernism of the Brazilian architect Niemeyer. A few yeas after graduation, I had to emigrate from my country Latvia to Luxembourg. And so when I started traveling around the world 404 Special Issue An interview by , curator and curator and going to museums, I started learning a lot. In my tireless search I strove to find my individual style without imitating any of famous trends. It was pleasure for me to gain experience by learning from nature, absorbing its beauty and harmony, the perfection of the lines and forms. From visiting California Yosemite National Park, I painted many
Special Issue 24053 beautiful landscapes and interesting historical places with rich ancient architecture and cities with modern skyscrapers like Chicago. Afterwards, my attention turned to the inner world of man and I’ve drawn a lot of portraits of my friends and strangers, mostly in pastel technique. But still, I found myself in the sculpture. I’m constantly looking for new ways and methods of artistic axpression. I’m fascinated by work with the plasticity of the body I stylize and integrate into an abstract form. My favorite material is bronze, I make it in different techniques and colors depending on the conception. I combine the bronze and stone, concrete and mosaic. Your stunning sculptures feature sapient use of symbols and we really appreciate their almost organic qualities, as well as the way they allude to meaning through symbolic and visual references: how do you consider the role of symbols playing within your artistic practice? And how important is for you to create artworks rich of allegorical qualities? Irina Bula: I use symbols, signs, allegories and mythological images that carry an inner meaning and subtext for my original art means. It seems to me that symbolic language, through its concise form and salient expression, brings what a whole literary narrative sometimes cannot. I often use the symbol of the hand, for example, sculpture called «Support» as the better ideogram of our actions. They can be both positive and negative. I adopted this style from the ancient Egyptian alphabet which was encrypted in hieroglyphs when I visited Egypt. The wisdom of words was typically hidden in iconic images. In another context, I did a sculpture called «Power». It happens that a dishonorable leader who has achieved a high level of power structure loses his humanity. In ART Habens Irina Bula
24061 Special Issue Irina Bula ART Habens
ART Habens Irina Bula Special Issue 24073
ART Habens 24081 Special Issue interpreting the violence against individual freedom I sculpted the big hand trying to crush people into a shapeless, grey mass. I made this hand in bronze and tinted it with a blue-green acid patina to show the metallic coldness and soullessness. I’ve always kept up with the time never get away from reality. The artist is an eyewitness to his time, a participant in the events that take place. I tried to achieve my art relevant and affecting for the audience. In my long experience of life, I have had to face several political systems. I have seen some unjust political systems and courts when human rights are grossly violated and laws are only for certain groups of people. I couldn’t be indifferent to how totalitarian power tried to break and destroy an individual and even whole nations. This painful theme is reflected in my sculptures called the «System» depicting the flywheel in motion as a symbol of the system of governance. The body of works that we have selected for this special edition of ART Habens has at once impressed us of for the way it highlights the relationship between the shapes: when walking our readers through your usual setup and process, would you tell us how do you usually develop the initial ideas for your artworks? In particular, do you create your works intuitivelly, instinctively? Or do you methodically transpose geometric schemes? Irina Bula: Before stating artwork I’m considering the idea of preparing a lot of sketches. In progress I can break some wrong elements and stat over. Getting stimulus is easy I just observe what’s going in the world. Your artistic production reflects with such kaleidoscopic visual value of aspect of your inner artistic research. Mexican artist Irina Bula
Special Issue 24093 Gabriel Orozco once stated, "artists's role differs depending on which part of the world they’re in": do you think that artists can raise awareness to an evergrowing audience on topical issues that affect our globalised society? In particular, what could be in your opinion the role of artists in our everchanging and unstable society? Irina Bula: Our civilization has reached the highest achievements in science and technology but cannot solve the problems of our time. Military conflicts, poverty, the ART Habens Irina Bula
24121 Special Issue migration afflict humanity, and we cannot find a way out of troubles. My thoughts led me to create several art projects: «Tree of life», depicting a young tree sprouting through an exploded bomb, «The human shield», symbolizing our planet surrounded by united people, and «Brotherhood». There are a huge number of nuclear weapons in the world now, Irina Bula ART Habens
Special Issue 2413 and even a small, local conflict can be the spark that leads to catastrophe.The threat of total war must be a thing in the past. In oder to convey a complex idea, I made the tree destroys a bomb with its crown and the strong roots. I wanted to highlight this symbol as it has a sacred mystical vitality. As a primary project, it’s made of painted plaster with an internal ART Habens Irina Bula
24141 Special Issue