NOS PRIMAVERA SOUND 15. Are you coming?

Just as summer is about to start, NOS Primavera Sound is preparing to kick off the Portuguese festival season. Whilst less well-known than its cousin in Barcelona, NOS Primavera Sound manages a delicate balancing act of mainstream and alternative, distinguishing itself by variety of style. As well as a wide selection of internationally established artists, the festival boasts a significant representation of up-and-coming talent, from Portugal and abroad. With a lineup including acts ranging from Ariel Pink, Viet Cong and FKA Twigs to Patti Smith to Mac DeMarco to Jungle and Caribou, NOS Primavera Sound promises something for everyone.

Nestled by the Porto seaside, Parque da Cidade creates the ideal framework for the festival. Within the city, yet by the coast and with easy access and scenic surroundings the park itself is one of the main attractions of the event. Apart from the main stage and the Super Bock stage, All Tomorrow’s Parties commissions a stage responsible for the more experimental programming, in various musical styles and the Pitchfork stage, commissioned by Pitchfork Media will bring some of the emerging names of international alternative music.

Compared to many of its European competitors, NOS Primavera Sound, which runs for three days, promises great value at a relatively low price allowing for a great mix of people to gather together under the southern sun, sharing music and summer vibes. We are certainly excited to pack our bags and head off to NOS Primavera Sound 15.

All images via ©  NOS Primavera Sound

When: 4-6 June 2015

Where: Porto, Portugal

mahabis and the return of the slipper

We’ve all been there, walked out of the house blissfully unaware of the all too comfy slipper cradling each foot and the added disappointment when you, or your overly vigilant neighbour, notices. Assumed with warmth and wellbeing, few shoes have succeeded to rival the slipper. In fact, here is a shoe lacking any new means of contemporary design in a very long time, until now. Brought to you by mahabis, a brand whose mission to reinvent one of the greatest egalitarian types of footwear has trickled into a formidable brand of redesigning and redefining lifestyle, finally inviting us to slow down, to stop and to take pleasure in one of life’s greater comforts and downright necessities that is downtime.

mahabis appreciates that much of our time spent outside profoundly impacts how we enjoy our time inside and uses the slipper to skillfully bridge the two together. In recognising that tradition and modernity can go hand in hand, mahabis asked, why must we stick to tradition when the slipper could be used inside and out? And quite rightly so, for when winter turns to spring and beach days turn to bonfires, we forget that our small toes still need that little bit of extra warmth.

Gone are the days when sipping on your coffee in your slippers could only be encountered in your home, the mahabis shoe allows you to do this anywhere and everywhere and is quickly becoming the must-have, go to form of footwear. In a world that’s become so fast paced it is often easy to neglect life’s simplest means, means that are imperceptibly impacting our daily lives and wellbeing and mahabis does well to challenge that, by way of slipper. They’ve brought the inside out, they’ve invited the outside in and simultaneously combined it with a life of adventure, photography, style and culture, to produce a whole design philosophy that’s ready to take the world by storm and we here at ROOMS love it.

 I caught up with mahabis founder Ankur Shah, to find out more.

Hi Ankur, tell me a little about yourself and the initial stages of mahabis.

I started my career as a criminal barrister, then meandered into a technology business which after selling that business left me with some time on my hands. That’s when I discovered this massive, but hidden world of slippers. A multi-billion dollar industry with a brand no one was excited about and a product set that was mundane and boring. I thought, hey, let’s try and change that. I was keen to build a lifestyle brand that encapsulated what life was all about, the downtime after the uptime.

And why slippers?

Slippers are an age-old product. They represent something so important. The idea of switching off. We spend billions on better performance, being faster, losing weight, getting stronger. But what about the things in life that let us tune-in whilst tuning out? Relaxing. Chilling out. I wanted to create a product that represented that, both aesthetically and functionally too. I hope we’re going some way to achieve that.

Briefly speak me through the design process of the mahabis slipper. Did the initial design change a lot?

Yes massively. If you saw the original ones you’d be amazed at how far we’ve come. We had the joy of iterating our designs with some of the best young designers in Europe. We played with 3d printing. Applied age-old manufacturing techniques. Whilst the journey was a roller coaster, it was also incredibly inspiring. We’ve incorporated a range of innovative techniques but have strived for a no-fuss, clean and minimal design. The trademark mahabis silhouette is something we have maintained throughout. For us the art of reduction was a hard fought right.

You are based in London but the shoes seem to adopt a very Scandinavian, minimalist approach. Has Scandinavia always been a source of inspiration along the journey?

It has, our slippers and soles are named after Scandinavian towns and cities.  We love the quintessentially minimalist aesthetic that is associated with Scandinavian countries, but also the perception of lifestyle minimalism, that less is more. In every sense.

Who is your target audience?

The bit of you that wants to relax. And what amazed us was how broad the cross-section was that identified with that. We talk a lot about redesigning downtime. And we’ve found that people from all age groups, evenly split across the genders, and people from all around the world really connect with that sentiment.

As much as it is a footwear brand, mahabis seems to adopt a whole lifestyle, which is evident in the brand’s imagery and the assisting online blog that you have (which I love!) Do you like to travel yourself?

Definitely, we’ve been global from day one. Our obsession is with embedding ourselves in as many places as possible, I think we’ve had customers from over 90+ countries so far. 

Some of our team are working in Ibiza as we speak! We’ve shifted some of the office there for a week, because we may or may not be working on a summer version…shhh, don’t tell anyone.

Your slippers have been extremely popular, had you expected the company to take off as quickly as it has?  

We knew there was a market there - the challenge was executing on our vision - as we knew that if we could connect with people on the sentiments we so strongly believed in then we’d have a chance.

We surpassed the 10,000 pair mark after just a handful of months, putting us ahead of amazing brands like TOMs. We’re really excited about where it goes from here.

And what’s in store for the future? Do you see mahabis sticking to its origins as a footwear brand or expanding?

We’re working on so much fun stuff, we think you’re going to love it! We’ll be sure to keep you updated, but keep a close eye as things are coming really, really soon…

All images via © mahabis

The Directors we loved at this year’s Cannes festival

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Emmanuelle Bercot. Photo via  www.notrecinema.com

This year’s Cannes film festival showcases the works of some remarkable directors and directorial debuts. As part of their ‘Director’s fortnight’ film list, the independent section running parallel to the festival, highlights the directorial talent in feature film, documentary and shorts. One of the most significant progresses has been the achievement of more female directors recognized for their work. Here is a compilation of some of the most anticipated directors acknowledged this year.

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Standing Tall. Photo via www.screedaily.com  Opens 13th May 2015 

Emmanuelle Bercot

One of the many female star-directors pinned to be this year’s main attraction of the festival.  Her French feature, Standing Tall has already received global attention and will be the festivals opening night selection. Bercot has already made a name for herself as a successful actress and with Standing Tall she has added successful director under her belt too. Bercot’s social realist drama tells the story of a troubled teenager Malony (Rod Paradot), who is ordered to straighten out his act by a judge. The film deals with issues of the governmental system that is designed to help kids like Malony collides with his changing personality and problems about family dysfunction. Young convincing Paradot debuts his acting for the first time and arguably steals the show in his emotional and unsettling performance alone. This film has already raised comparisons to the Dardeene brothers who have been acclaimed for their achievements in social realism drama, proving Standing Tall is in fact towering over the film selection at this years Cannes and due to be a success nationwide.

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Philippe Garrel. Photo via doctorbcinema.wordpress.com

Philippe Garrel

In the Shadow of Women opens May 14th 2015 | Photo via blogs.indiewire.com

French director Garrel takes direction from 60’s new wave cinema in his infidelity drama, In the Shadow of Women. The film shot in black and white centers on the relationship between a documentary-making couple. It is a power balance dictated by the husband Pierre who begins an affair, leaving wife Manon ‘in the shadow.’ Garrel delivers a new take on romance articulating the strange ways we follow desire and lust. There is something to be said about the French acclaimed directors leading this years festival in that their style and their quality never fall short on delivering to the audience even more so in their native France.

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A Tale of Love and Darkness opening date TBA | Photo: www.sandiegored.com

Natalie Portman

The Oscar-winning actress makes her directorial debut about the birth of the state of Israel in her film, A Tale of Love and Darkness. The Israeli-born star brings Amos Oz’s international bestseller to the big screen and tells the tale of a boy coming of age in the tumultuous period before and after Israel’s independence from British order. The film shows the complexity of the Arab-Israeli conflict that has rarely been touched upon in Hollywood before. Portman also stars in and wrote the screenplay adaptation of Oz’s work proving her potential behind the camera is just as impressive as in front.

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Rick Famuyiwa. Photo via  www.tribune.com.ng

Rick Famuyiwa

Famuyiwa introduces his new feature Dope debuting the multi-talented hip-hop artist A$AP Rocky as well as many other well-known names in the music industry. Dope has been making waves since its premiere at Sundance and has since gained a massive following. The film tells the story of young Malcolm (Shemeik Moore) surviving high school in the tough neighbourhood in Los Angeles. He gets invited to an underground party by chance which unfolds his adventure that could allow him to being accepted as cool or ‘dope’ by his peers but ultimately is a story about self-discovery and self-acceptance. Dope is a film for this generation loaded with 90’s hip-hop reference and cleverly stylised to be a fresh urban take on teenage-hood, it most certainly will have no trouble finding its audience once it is released worldwide.

Dope opens on June 19

Check out the full programme of films and directors exhibited at Cannes Film Festival 2015 and The Director Fortnight section

http://www.quinzaine-realisateurs.com/en

True Multi-Love for Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s recent gig at the Islington Assembly Hall

Seeing Portland’s Unknown Mortal Orchestra live is nothing compared to listening to their funky indie pop songs on full blast at home – while the latter is impeccable and commands foot tapping and stumbling dance moves, the experience of seeing them live is like a good and hopeful amorous relationship that only grows stronger with time.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra - “Multi-Love” from THE ALBUM ‘Multi-Love’ out May 26th, 2015 on Jagjaguwar SCD/direct: http://smarturl.it/umo?iQid=sc // Amazon: http://smarturl.it/umo_amazon?iQid=sc // iTunes: http://smarturl.it/umo_itunes?iQid=sc // Indies: http://smarturl.it/umo_indies?iQid=sc Unknown Mortal Orchestra Artist Page http://www.jagjaguwar.com/artist.php?name=umo Website http://unknownmortalorchestra.com/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/unknownmortalorchestra Twitter https://twitter.com/UMO Instagram http://instagram.com/unknownmortalorchestra Unknown Mortal Orchestra - “Multi-Love” from ‘Multi-Love’ out May 26th, 2015 on Jagjaguwar

Starting the night with Like Acid Rain from their new album Multi-Love (Released on 25.05.2015 on Jagjaguwar), it is the kind of concert that is exhilarating – the sound is faster, louder and an explosive burst of psychedelia that sets the tone for the rest of the evening. The new album, which somehow finds a way into disco, explores the different meanings of love and polyamorous relationships on refreshing layers of upbeat tunes, fuzzy rock guitars and ethereal vocals. 

As the classic tunes from their previous album were filled with their distinct boombox lo-fi sound, it is good to see Unknown Mortal Orchestra evolving and incorporating more funky, disco touches to their already irreproachable music. When they started performing one of their iconic songs, From the Sun, the crowd cheered and happily became one with frontman Ruban Nielson, clamouring their famous line ‘Isolation can put a gun to your head’ – their sweetest and catchiest tune. 

While the other band members were brilliant (particularly Riley Geare on his drum solo introducing Ur Life One Night after the equally great How Can You Luv Me; and new band member Quincy McCrary’s piano solo after the timeless So Good At Being In Trouble – live, it was faster and possessed more edge), Nielson seemed to tire easily and did not deliver as much as he could have on So Good At Being In Trouble and Swim and Sleep, leaving it mostly to the audience and other band members. While raspy, out-of-breath, and woozy singing may at times enhance and bring an extra layer to a song, Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s music is one that is enjoyed when polished at its best. Fortunately, Nielson makes a show out of being on stage; dancing, lying on the floor and sitting at the front of the stage, leaning towards the audience with vocal melodies embracing jerky undertones, before finishing off with a jazzy version of Ffuny Ffriends that got the entire crowd clapping along, and a cosmic rendition of Multi Love, greatly enhanced by Quincy at the keyboard. The encore song, Can’t Keep Checking My Phone, left the audience dancing along on a positive disco vibe, before everyone hurried to Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s just announced after-gig show in Dalston.

The after-gig show, which started around 1AM, started with a surprising beat in the intimate and dark underground room at Birthdays, with crowds cheering louder than ever. Coupled with some upbeat mixes and spontaneous new drum nuances that made the music even more great in a head-banging, toe-tapping way, the entire band seemed to be even more energetic than at their concert, greatly encouraged by fans singing along to all their songs. Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s performance of So Good At Being in Trouble was the definitive climax of the show, proving once again that they do indeed become better and better as the night goes along – and we can’t wait for more.

Photos by Suzanne Zhang

Unknown Mortal Orchestra | Islington Assembly Hall

Michael Corridore and London’s New Photography Fair

By Libby Russell

Michael Corridore - Transient, The think line we walk

The ambitious upcoming international photography fair, Photo London, has attracted a lot of attention. According to co-director of the fair, Michael Benson it aspires to be “The best photography fair in the world - bar none.” Proposing to mirror the impact of Frieze, it aims to transform London’s photography audience, to attract people less likely to attend a photography fair, in a climate where, Benson believes, photography is finally being noticed after previous years of it’s significance being underappreciated. With all the hype, it has a lot to live up to and it’s set to meet expectations with exhibiting artists like Michael Corridore working recently with Galerie Pavlova.

Angry Black Snake (2004-2012) is perhaps Corridore’s most recognised work in recent years. The photography series shows people fighting through clouds of sand and dust, shielding their eyes. Without context the viewer could assume something very different from what was being documented; audiences of outdoor events like racing. These scenes instead seem dystopian and post-apocalyptic. This work inverts the gaze and focuses on the spectator rather then what they’re watching, perhaps reappropriating them as objects, which in turn implicates viewers of the work themselves in the same contemplation.

Michael Corridore - Transient, The think line we walk

Earlier this year Corridore exhibited in Frühlings Salon, Galerie Pavlova and now is back exhibiting at Photo London 2015 with the work ‘Transient - The thin line we walk’, an experimental photo series presenting abstracted images of densely populated urban landscapes from an elevated viewpoint. This is a stark shift from his previous focus on deserted and barren areas but it brings us back to peoples collision with their environment. It presents to the audience the issue of ‘humans’ indiscriminate imprint’, making us confront our impact on our environment, illustrating our negligence and imposed ownership upon it. The act of creating the final image has involved many steps of abstracting the original photo. This process of distancing and simplifying questions, Does a photograph become less a documentation of a moment as it becomes less recognizable?

The widely anticipated Photo London is held at Somerset House from 21-24 May 2015. With talk of selfie stick aerobics classes over at Tate Modern, this fair promises to be as focused on the worth of concept driven photography as much as selling work, keeping up with evolving contemporary institutional practices and inviting in new and curious audiences. 

Galerie Pavlova

Michael Corridore

Photo London

Kojey Radical's BAMBU : A masterpiece of progressive Hip-Hop

Kojey Radical, a British-Ghanian, self-styled artist, poet, and artistic director of his own clothing brand rewrites hip-hop and makes it entirely his own with his new single, BAMBU.

Kojey’s style is forward thinking. In BAMBU we find criticisms of the superficiality within urban society. He metaphorically grabs Hip-Hop by its horns and steers it towards a progressive dimension, where the focus lies mainly in the lyrics themselves rather than (as he puts it): “pussy, weed, money.”

In the single we find a more passionate and personal response to his previous work. BAMBU is a story in itself. Lupus Cain’s minimalist trap production leaves much room for Kojey’s deeply intense and profound lyrics. The beat remains as such and crescendos until the climactic end of the song. The snare drums resonate and bang harder alongside Kojey’s visceral, coarse-grained repetition of the lyrics: “Can’t see the truth when you’re six feet deep.”

And yet the song remains more spoken-word than anything else. Which is why it is unsurprising that he has been likened to Kendrick Lamar. Both artists make use of poetry to make social commentaries. Be they condemning or evaluating, This style of critique within a song is certainly garnering attention. Are we seeing a poetic style of rapping emerging in the UK hip-hop scene? As long as singles like BAMBU exist, we can only hope so.

KOJEY RADICAL - BAMBU

RELEASED JUNE 1st 2015 ON SELF RELEASED

Tour Dates

MAY 20TH 2015            GLASGOW, UK                         ART SCHOOL 

MAY 21ST 2015            NEWCASTLE, UK                     RIVERSIDE     

MAY 22ND 2015           LEEDS, UK                              BRUDENELL SOCIAL CLUB

MAY 23RD 2015           KNOCKENGORROCH, UK       WORLD CEILIDH FESTIVAL

MAY 25TH 2015            MANCHESTER, UK                  GORILLA         

MAY 26TH 2015            NOTTINGHAM, UK                   RESCUE ROOMS       

MAY 27TH 2015            CARDIFF, UK                           CLWB IFOR BACH

MAY 28TH 2015            LONDON, UK                           KOKO  

MAY 29TH 2015            BRIGHTON, UK                                    THE HAUNT    

MAY 31TH 2015            SOUTHAMPTON, UK               ENGINE ROOMS         

JUN 1ST 2015              GLOUCESTER, UK                  GUILDHALL     

JUN 2ND 2015              OXFORD, UK                           O2 ACADEMY 2          

JUN 3RD 2015              BIRMINGHAM, UK                   HARE & HOUNDS       

JUN 4TH 2015              STOKE-ON-TRENT, UK                        THE SUGARMILL        

JUN 5TH 2015              NORWICH, UK                         NORWICH ARTS CENTRE      

JUN 6TH 2015              SHEFFIELD, UK                       O2 ACADEMY 2           

KOJEY RADICAL

Digital Graffiti Festival 2015 at Alys Beach

In two weeks, for three nights only, Alys Beach, Florida, will be opening its white washed walls to a hive of groundbreaking art, colour and digitally infused magic, for the Eighth Annual Digital Graffiti Festival, in one of our favourite and uniquely exciting venues. 

Digital Graffiti is the world’s first projection arts festival that provides artists from around the globe with an opportunity to use the latest design, aviation and projection technologies to display their art works simultaneously, wrapping the architecture of Alys beach with entirely new ways of experiencing the arts, devoid of any institutional restrains. This is a festival that stands out for its accessibility to all and exclusivity of a space promising a unique and intimate, multi-sensory experience that will challenge you to reconsider the different ways in which public spaces can be used. Digital Graffiti stays well and true to the view that our streets are one of the largest gallery’s in the world and does so in a way that will leave you dazzled and razzled and coming back for more.  

DG curator Brett Phares explains, “The works shown at this year’s festival will challenge how digital art is perceived. As technology progresses and becomes more accessible, we’re seeing artists softening their edges, with work appearing to be hand-drawn or painted. Viewers will second guess what they’re seeing, especially as it interacts with the architecture of Alys Beach.”

This year Phares will be kicking off the programme with an insider’s view to some of the selected finalists for the DG2015. Among them, our super talented, good friend and writer of ROOMS Jesc Bunyard will be exhibiting her work, skillfully using C-Type photograms to explore the interactions between colour, music and its audience. These talks will be closely followed by a vibrant and vivid demonstration of exhibitions, installations, an awards ceremony and a not-to-be-missed finale at the Caliza Pool. Prizes will be awarded by a panel of five judges including special guest, Robert Seidel, winner of the ‘Best of Show’ at Digital Graffiti’s inaugural festival in, and will select a Best of Show and award four honourable mentions. Among them, Brett Phares will also select a Curator’s Choice Award and a total of $10,000 will be awarded to the winners to help them further their artistic careers. 

Digital Graffiti at Alys Beach | June 4 – 6 

All images © Digital Graffiti

How Art can lend a helping hand

Photo by James Rowbowtham

Art can act as many things. As catharsis. As investment. As expression. As experience. Combining these, art can thus produce the formula to benefit those that are less fortunate. 

And those that are less fortunate include disabled people. Research conducted by Dr. Margaret Taylor in 2005 found that art was instrumental to the identity-forming process of disabled people. She concluded that art was a method of empowerment for young disabled people because it allowed them to have a sense of fulfilment by addressing ‘negative and oppressive perceptions of disability via their artwork.’ 

There are a plethora of disabled people who use art as a channel for self-expression. So much so that disability in the arts is breaking into the mainstream – we need look no further than the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square, London.

From 2005-2007 we saw Alison Lapper Pregnant by Marc Quinn – a marble sculpture of the ever-intrepid disabled artist Alison Lapper, who is herself a spokesperson for the empowerment and autonomy of disabled people. This piece was so well received that Marc Quinn was commissioned to remake the sculpture on a grander scale for the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics. And from 2010-2012 we also saw Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle by Yinka Shonibare – the British-Nigerian conceptual artist who suffers from a disability that renders half of his body paralysed. But that does not mar his talent – in spite of his disability, he was nominated for the Turner Prize for his Double Dutch exhibition in 2004.

And Dr. Taylor’s findings lend intuitive appeal to the growing field of art therapy. Combining psychotherapy with art – it is a tool that can be used to help not only disabled people, but one that is designed to tackle other social issues too. Dr. Sarah Deaver, the President of American Art Therapy Association defines art therapy as:

‘A mental health profession in which an art therapist facilitates the client's use of art media and the creative process to reach a number of treatment goals or personal goals such as exploring feelings, reconciling conflicts, improving self awareness, behaviour management, social skills.’

The method works on the very simple principle of allowing individuals to express themselves non-verbally. It avoids the defences and social desirability biases that are naturally prevalent in verbal therapy. A person would be hesitant to vocalise exactly how they feel – but art therapy (as Dr. Deaver puts it) ‘bypasses this’ as a ‘rich avenue for self-expression.

There are several galleries and organisations that are structured around helping some of these less fortunate individuals. Shape Arts, a disability-led arts organisation aims to empower disabled people through their holistic mission – by including disabled people within the arts sector and encouraging them to have an influential role in to too. Conquest Art, a charity with a similar mission that uses art groups to help disabled people ‘regain confidence in their abilities and to find happiness through self-expression.’

The Free Space Gallery as well as the London Art Therapy Centre both promote well-being via the arts, utilizing the effective method of art therapy to showcase the work of artists that would otherwise be under-represented.  PIP online helps adults with learning disabilities on a range of different services – of which include the arts.

There seems to be a recurring theme of promoting self-expression. When one is given the freedom to communicate emotion through art – they are given the means to not only address their own personal issues, but to also gain the confidence to tackle them. Art is beautified through its inclusivity. It will not degrade or demean those with social issues but serve as a sanctuary for them. And with the numerous organisations that provide them with support, it seems that the future certainly looks brighter.

Shape Arts

Conquest Art

The Free Space Gallery

London Art Therapy Centre

PIP Online

Nok Nok. Who’s there?

Nok Nok is a vibrant new take on the classic denim jean that has sparked excitement in the creative hub of East London. Nok Nok is an experimental take on how we see and wear our favorite piece of clothing, drawing on inspiration from classic British tailoring and merging them with new washes and techniques inspired by vintage punk, surf and skate style. Nok Nok sources their denim fabrics from Okayama, Japan to provide a solid range of T-shirt.

ROOMS had the privilege to speak to the head designer and founder Angel Nokonoko about his denim collection, why he loves Dalston and what advice he can give to aspiring fashion designers.

How would you describe your company Nok Nok?

Nok Nok is an extension of myself, fun, interesting, and fresh, different with an edge as I say.

How did you get started designing, was this a childhood dream, were you always interested in a career in fashion?

Well since my nightlife times in Ibiza as a teen I use to make and customized t-shirts and jeans for my friends before going raving. It wasn’t really a childhood dream to be honest, I wanted to be a footballer, but I enjoyed making clothes, cutting them, putting studs, it was a great way of expressing myself, like a painting or a picture you want to send a friend or recreate a feeling that you have deep down.

You are a designer and a DJ; do you draw inspiration for designing from music too?

I draw inspiration from anything that I connect with in on spiritual a physical level. I will feel an instant urge to wright it down, draw it or taking a pic. But yeah music it’s a great source of inspiration, same as movies, I love dramas! I don’t really consider myself a DJ out of respect of some of my good friends that are masters in this craft. I would say I’m a good tune selector with a good eye to feel what people want to listen. But funny enough lately I’m djing every weekend with a monthly residency for Weekend Gang Party and I have a weekly radio show at Dejavufm on Thursday.

You are based in East London but you are originally from Ibiza, how are the two cultures different and how have they influenced your fashion designs?

I think East London is a bigger Ibiza, there’s so much energy, I love living in Dalston. I feel so energized and inspired whenever I’m out, the mixture of cultures and styles are great from Turkish to Jamaicans, from fashionistas to skaters and rockers... It’s great and the nightlife it’s pretty good, so it reminds me of Ibiza, the happy vibes… the mixture of people. This influences my work constantly, I like to create pieces that people can wear on a night out, cool rock & roll, sexy and also can wear them to the beach during the day.

Are there any other designers or places of interest in London you get inspiration from?

Nowadays I don’t really follow or check other designers I rather check painters, sculptures, dancers, singers! I draw inspiration from their style, personality & aura... London is great for inspiration you can go to Soho and the energy is so strong or you can go to Stamford hill and feel like you are in a totally different country but this is so beautiful and inspiring. 

I understand you are a Central Saint Martins alumni, what kind of advice would you give to a young fashion student inspiring to have their own fashion company?

My time in Saint Martins was some of the best years in London. I used to organize parties for all the students and sometimes teachers used to come down so people used to know me for that. But I also worked really hard; I would say work hard but also learn as much as you can, meet people that can give you good advice, be confident in your dream, don’t let anyone tell you can’t do it! Learn from your mistakes, but above all have fun while you are building you company!! It’s so exciting.

You place a lot of value in detail in your denim collection, from floral fabrics lining the interior to good quality sourced fabrics from Japan, how important is detail for you in design?

Angel Nokonoko by  Vlady Vala

I love detail; this comes from the fact that I’m a menswear designer first, so I like to focus on small hidden details. It’s what shows that you have been thinking and studying your design, that there’s a balance and reasoning behind it all. I believe quality is very important; it’s a key point on your brand, especially for small brands, the way you are able to compete is by introducing interesting cool details and quality. I have always been in love with Japan, its culture, people and way of life, they are perfectionist when it comes to craftsmanship, and so quality there is very important.

We are doing a big event in Tokyo in June for my brand in partnership with Weekend Gang Party and 6Tribes.com

What are your plans for your brand for the next year?

I have so many plans for the brand, sky is the limit! We want to get stocked at some big retailers in London, we are talking with a few and have meetings; in addition we are working in a licensing deal for a distribution company in Canada so that will help lift the business up. But for me fashion is just one side of the brand, I would like to expand it to entertainment, like a lounge/shop, a radio station and few other things…

Earn some fashion points by checking out Nok Nok denim designs

All photos © Nok Nok denim and Angel Nokonoko

Nok Nok

Contained Chaos : Chris Burden

On the 10th of May 2015 the art world lost one of its most creative and daring artists to melanoma.

Chris Burden was an American artist who is perhaps most well known for his self-sacrificing performance works that paved the way for performance art, and indeed all of contemporary art today.

Burden studied first architecture and then sculpture at Pomona University and later The University of California, which is where he developed his interest in art that “forced the viewer to move”.

The sculptures that he was making at this time were large-scale objects that people could walk through, around, and on, making the viewers literally move. Later on in his studies he started working with performance, living inside a university locker for five days. This move from architectural works to more bodily works is where his work became truly captivating.

In his controversial work Shoot (1971), Burden was shot in the left shoulder at close-range by his assistant. This was carefully planned and orchestrated act that was witnessed by a few select people and documented by a grainy black and white film. It is unclear what this artwork signified in Burden’s mind, something which is no doubt entirely intentional.

Burden was interested in “the fine line between being too instructive, and letting people learn on their own.”, suggesting that his works are meant to be experienced and then ruminated upon, with no more didacticism from him.

Over in just a few seconds, many of his works leave the audience not only questioning what it is that they saw, but also why anyone would put themselves through such things. The works became “Beautiful in their hauntingness”.

These works were all experienced by an audience that did not know what was going to happen, and were as confused after as they were before. Burden was interested in the forced complicity of the viewers, placing his work halfway between theatre and art. The imagined curtain between the audience and the artist is removed, placing some of the responsibility for his actions in their hands. Should they stand by and watch him electrocute himself, or should they intervene? This uneasiness is what made his artworks so interesting, and impossible to forget.

Later on in his career, Burden moved away from performance art and back towards sculpture and instillation. The Flying Steamroller (1996) is a large scale kinetic artwork in which a steamroller is attached to a horizontal bar upon a central rotating pivot, counter-weighted by a cement block of almost equal weight. As the steamroller drives round in circles and gets faster, eventually the speed (and a hydraulic piston) lifts it off the ground and it rotates almost effortlessly. This work forces the viewer to ponder the horror and destruction that would ensue were the support to break, whilst simultaneously admiring its delicacy and balance.

Burden liked the idea of something with tremendous potential energy appearing tranquil and serene, something he also played with in his 1979 work, The Big Wheel, in which a flywheel was spun by the rotating of a motorbike wheel, and left to spin. If the wheel were to come off the wooden support it would plow through anything that stood in its way, and yet all of the time it didn’t it appeared graceful and methodical. A contained chaos.

His work was often dangerous, but it was never reckless. Seemingly spontaneous works had been methodically planned, and wherever necessary he consulted experts in the given fields in which he was working.

In 1972, Burden created his most shocking work TV Hijack, in which he literally hijacked a live TV broadcast and held a knife to the throat of the female presenter. Whilst threatening her life he also demanded that the live feed was not severed, or her head would be also, all the time threatening to force her to perform obscene acts.

This work steps one step further than simply shooting yourself in the arm. In this work, an unwitting participant is forced to become part of what no one but the artist at that time realized to be an artwork.

When witnessing something believed to be an artwork, the fear you experience is diluted as you know that the work is relatively safe. With Burden’s Flying Steamroller work for example, the work is initially intimidating, but subconsciously you know that this is an artwork and therefore has been safety tested and carefully planned. Even with Shoot, the viewers know that firstly their own lives are safe, but also that to some extent so is the artist’s.

Shocking artworks allow the viewer to experience safely the adrenaline one gets from fear, in a controlled and familiar environment. With TV Hijack, this ‘safe’ fear was removed in favor of inciting ‘real’ fear in all who witnessed it. No one but Burden knew that he had no real intention of slicing her throat, and for this reason the work is truly shocking.

Whatever the ethics of such a work are, an interesting and intense dialogue is created. And isn’t that the true purpose of art?

Burden was a fearless revolutionary, a pioneer of 'action' art, and someone that proved that art that shocks its audience can also have deeper meaning. He was always looking to the future, planning new works and inventing new technologies. His future is sadly now over at 69, but the legacy he leaves is immeasurable.

He was an artist, teacher, and inventor, and one without whom the world feels a little emptier.

In remembrance of Chris Burden, someone please shoot me in the shoulder and nail me to a car.

R.I.P Chris Burden

1946 - 2015

‘Voguing’ through NYC subways in this gritty new film by Clayton Vomero

NYC based filmmaker Clayton Vomero introduces his raw short GANG, following the day in the life of three friends as they rap, sing and vogue their way around Staten Island. 

The 17-minute film features Mela Murder and Denasia Moore, two members of the Major Lazer dance team. Ghostface Killah’s son, Infinite Coles, plays the third friend. Together, the three friends in their gang shed light on youth culture and what it means to grow up in electric and gritty New York City, with particular focus on ‘voguing’ culture. 

Voguing is a stylized form of house dance characterized by model like poses of linear arm and leg movements arising from Harlem ballrooms by African and Latino Americans. It is Mela Murders character that boldly takes the lead in this contemporary articulation of voguing and its significance on expression. 

According to Clayton, the inclusion of dance in his film was a medium used by the characters to express their confidence despite the many social restraints imposed on them. In an interview Clayton remarks; ‘It’s a story about people; it’s not about being gay, or black, or poor or dancing. It’s just about being a person and looking for other people like you. The beautiful thing about Mel, Inf, and D’s friendship is that they help each other to be their most confident selves. They don’t look to each other for approval; they encourage each other to be who they are. I think voguing is just an expression of confidence for them.’

 The film itself is heavily urbanised with contemporary dance and Lo-fi music playing an intrinsic part in forming the narrative as well as the very real-to-life dialogue that takes you right back to being a teenager. The film deals with themes of identity and social circumstances with the idea that you can make the most of whatever you have. The friends in the film are restrained economically, but they do not allow this to affect their experiences as a young person living in New York, and together they grow their own confidence performing carefree through the city with no feelings of burdens or barriers. Through the course of living out their life they deal with personal issues about love and friendship, encouraging each other to be strong individuals. 

If any young person were to watch anything of significance in their life, GANG is sure to be right up there as a film for this generation and undoubtedly the film of the year for any young New Yorker and those wishing to recount their childhood. It is a film that is about growing, giving so much of itself as a film to the audience in terms of its moral and its authenticity, which makes it all the more exciting to know of Clayton’s plan to transform this short into a feature length film. Watch out for Clayton’s next film and if you haven’t already checked GANG you can preview it through this link.

The Outdoor Cinema presents films under the Shoreditch stars

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We’ve all heard of your Secret Cinema, Hot tub cinema, Pillow cinema and all the other assortment of companies showcasing your beloved movies in remarkable spaces. 

Now as the summer season is approaching, The Outdoor Cinema Company promises to be the new edition in line of al fresco stargazing cinema watching, dubbing themselves as ‘The best Outdoor Film experience in the UK.’

The concept works similarly to the rest, remaining tight-lipped about the program of films that will be screened in the aim of surprising viewers. The films will be screened at night to the backdrop of the glistening stars promising to offer a dynamic and enchanting cinematic experience. The company has organized its UK tour stopping and setting up cinemas in multiple cities and towns from Bristol to Bradford to Lincolnshire and London. 

The London event will take place on the 5th June and tickets will be made available when registering at The Outdoor cinema website and information about films will be divulged at a later date. 

But for now, if the idea of paying in excessive amount for tickets to watch a film seems like an unappealing prospect. Recently, The Secret Cinema defended its £75 ticket price tag for their latest Star Wars installment. The next logical step would be to register and sign up for more feasible options like The Outdoor Cinema and experience a refreshing approach of viewing movies.

 Register and Sign up for tickets and further information: The Outdoor Cinema Company

 Image taken from Outdoor cinema instagram

URBAN KINGS: A solo exhibition with Gonny Van Hulst

To artistically imbue socio-political themes on an unforgiving medium such as glass is no easy task. But London-based artist Gonny Van Hulst (also known as GonnyGlass) manages just that.

URBAN KINGS elevates the pest to the princely. The vermin to the valiant. The animals native to our concrete, urban environment are paid a royal homage in this exhibition. The Foxes, Rats, Pigeons, Squirrels and Crows – all endemic to the city life – have had to adapt to their industrial surroundings and survive nonetheless. By depicting these crowned creatures in such a light, URBAN KINGS reminds us of our harmonious relationship with nature despite such an adversarial environment, and that we must celebrate all living things, no matter how big or small. These citified animals are enthroned on antique English glass, hot and cold cured photo-fusing prints, paint, lacquer, and hand-forged ironwork all framed in restored late 1800s Victorian timber.

Gonny Van Hulst

The Ben Oakley Gallery

URBAN KINGS by Gonny Van Hulst - 16th to 31st May 2015

PRIVATE VIEW: Friday 15th May 6:30-9pm

9 Turnpin Lane, Greenwich, London SE10 9JA

Opening Times: Thursdays –Sundays 11-6pm | Monday –Wednesday by appointment.

ROOMS 17 presents: A Female Perspective in Film

Women are pioneering the film industry now more than ever before, slowly shrinking the gender gap that has long dominated cinema. ROOMS proudly waves the feminism flag presenting the latest feature aimed to celebrate and pave the way for more female recognition in Film, A Female Perspective in Film, featuring Ruth Paxton, Francesca Gregorini and Daisy Jacobs.

Writer, director and producer Francesca Gregorini one of the women featured, earned a nomination at the Sundance Film Festival 2013 Grand Jury Prize – Dramatic for her film ‘The Truth about Emanuel.’ In the feature she shares an insight into women’s position in film today; ‘I feel very honoured to be one of the very few women out there when you think of the percentages of filmmakers. I take it on as a responsibility because there’s not that many voices out there and I think if telling women’s stories, if this is the only thing I ever do in my entire career, then I’ll be completely happy and satisfied.’

Unfortunately, Gregorini is right about the amount of women filmmakers out there. According to the latest industry statistics in 2014, women accounted for 7% of directors, up 1 percentage point from 2013 but down 2 percentage points from 9% in 1998. 

Francesca Gregorini

Although, it appears that female supporting their own in film is increasingly evident in the industry with films directed by women featuring more women in all roles. There is a 21% increase in women working on a narrative film when there is a female director and a 24% of women working on documentaries. Thereby, suggesting that the new wave of feminism in film is an encouraging prospect, showing women having more of an impact in aiding the success of other women in the industry. Gregorini shared similar views in the feature, urging women to be aware of all types of positions available in film; ‘We need more female financiers and female executives and all of these people being mindful of trying to help a sister out.’

It is a slow battle of equality for women in film, the latest Oscar award ceremony proved in abundance that men are still leading in the high leagues with writer and director Ruth Paxton who also featured stating; ‘five filmmakers nominated in the Best Director were all white men, reflects the reigning racism and sexism in Hollywood, which sets the blueprint really.’

The underlining notion is that there needs to be a balance of women and men in film, not just to balance out the sexes but to equalise the kind of voices and the type of films being produced. Paxton is accurate to have these opinions about sexism in Hollywood; it is after all, the largest controllers of distribution, exhibition and production in film and in order for there to be more equality, it needs to be initiated by Hollywood first who maintains this power. If Hollywood continues as it is, controlled by men, from the top investors to the top directors, that sets an inevitable misogynist binary in film that does not cater for women in our population.

But for now, we live in hope. ROOMS latest feature, A Female Perspective in Film certainly offers that, exhibiting the latest in pioneering female filmmaking of three talented women proving success can be built on merit and not gender.

Phoebe Shannon-Fagan interviews Francesca Gregorini, Daisy Jacobs and Ruth Paxton in our current issue ROOMS 17 Who decides what you see

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The Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2015 Exhibition at The Photographer’s Gallery

Last week, this year’s Deutsche Börse Photography Prize Exhibition opened at the Photographer’s Gallery in London, showcasing the work of finalists Nikolai Bakharev, Zanele Muholi, Viviane Sassen and Mikhael Subotzky and Patrick Waterhouse.

Coil, from the series Soil, 2014 © Viviane Sassen

Perhaps having just finished Lelyveld’s profoundly moving book Move Your Shadow, I was immediately drawn to the work of Mikhael Subotzky and Patrick Waterhouse, shortlisted for their publication, Ponte City. Displayed on the top floor of the gallery and quite fittingly so, Ponte City documents the results of a mammoth six year project on a 54-floor apartment block in Johannesburg, which was built during the Apartheid era and stands today as a living reminder to all those who suffered an inconsolable amount of racial antagonism and arguably today, still sits at the forefront of conflict in South Africa.

Untitled #5, from the series Relation, 1991-1993 © MAMM, Moscow / Nikolai 

Built for the white ‘sophisticates’ in the heyday of the Apartheid, by the 1990s Ponte City hailed a new group of residents and with that came a pool of neglect. A building that once welcomed its residents to ‘heaven on earth’ quickly turned into an epicenter of crime, a symbol of urban hatred and South Africa’s tallest slum-dogged squat den, to put it bluntly.

In 2007, Subotzky and Waterhouse began their project, picking up the pieces that remained in the now half occupied residency. The result was a stunning culmination of visuals, architectural plans and the untold stories of past and present occupants, documenting the history of a building packed with contrasts and indicative of a nation’s changing cultures, ideologies, racial neglect and the less grandiose reality of apartment living.

In an impressive floor to ceiling light box, Subotzky and Waterhouse display the images they captured on each floor of the tower block; every door, view and television screen captured through the lens of a camera and with it, the accompanying stories, essays and documentary texts that put it all into context. 

Ponte City from Yeoville Ridge, from the series Ponte City, 2008 © Mikhael 

For me, what was so striking about this exhibit was not so much the photographs themselves but the sheer number of lives and stories subsumed within the solid walls of one tower block. We live in a world of hellishly confined spaces yet have mastered an unnerving ability to keep everything behind closed doors and Subotzky and Waterhouse’s project does well to address this. Ponte City reaches beyond the facade of rainbow coloured curtains and smiling faces, to expose us to the realities of apartment living, poverty and the unending prejudice that still lingers today. Visually perhaps not the most striking, but here is a body of work that sticks with you both for its content and ability to leave you questioning what has really changed in a country still evidently stuck between its past and present.

Downstairs, visual activist Zanele Muholi uses a different medium to challenge, specifically, the identity and politics of LGBTI communities in post-apartheid South Africa, with a wall of stunning black and white portraits. At a glance, individuals silenced and under explained, but shift your attention to the limply held, hand written words hanging to the left of the gallery and an unsettling likeness begins to emerge. For these are the real faces and real words of former victims, subjected to prejudice and curative rape but still stand before us. No rainbow filters through these images, but strength, defiance and dignity remains. They are the images of a ‘Rainbow Nation’ cast only in black and white and captured by Muholi in the most sensitive and simultaneously hard-hitting of ways.

Untitled #70, from the series Relation, 1991-1993 © MAMM, Moscow / Nikolai 

Politically, here are two of the better contestants, but all indisputably unrivalled by last year’s finalist, Richard Mosse who, in his epic display of coloured jungle war zones, set the bar very, very high. For me, this year’s finalists lack any real visual flair but rather, comply with the often held high view that ‘content is king’. An interesting, defiant and provocative body of works nevertheless, and most definitely worth a visit. 

The exhibition, featuring work by all four shortlisted artists is on show at the Photographer’s Gallery until 7 June | www.thephotographersgallery.org.uk ​

Stroke Art Fair 2015

The Praterinsel, a semi-island in Munich’s Isar river hosted the annual Stroke Art Fair for the third time this month.

Photo from Stroke Art Fair website

Founded by Marco and Raiko Schwab in 2009, the fair seeks to support and showcase young artists and galleries and present them with an opportunity to enter the art market by keeping the fees to a minimum. To brothers Marco and Raiko it is all about the idea of art without boundaries and notions of elitism. Stroke Art Fair shares their vision of art, design and urban life in the 21st century with participating galleries and art spaces from Germany as well as Holland, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Poland, Spain, Switzerland and the UK.

Since its inception, Stroke has attracted over 100,000 visitors, making the fair one of the top 5 art fairs in Germany for attendance. The fair offer a good mix by giving space to urban as well as contemporary art galleries such as Jealous Gallery from London and 44309 Street Art Gallery from Dortmund, independent art projects, art collectives, publishers, fashion and furniture designers, graphic design and print companies,  and individual artists for live painting and experimental art.

Photos by Heike Dempster

Despite a lot of rain, visitors flocked to Praterinsel for art, good company, food and drinks. Works that stood out were Berlin artists Herakut, Munich photographer Andrea Peipe, Telmo & Miel from the Netherlands with their “Glove Stories,” Mad C’s abtract pieces in watercolor, acrylic and spray paint, Anton Hoeger, Jakob Tory Bardon, Brigitte Yoshiko Pruchnow’s rainy canvases as well as Seungyea Park and Stefan Zsaitsits as part of a project by Størpunkt, a contemporary art gallery in Munich.

Australian artist Rone and Heike in rainy Munich for the Stroke Art Fair 2015

Seungyea Park’s portraits are tend to be scary and surreal as the artist uses deformities, additional eyes or limbs or animal heads to explore feat as well as the divide between our inner and outer selves. Stefan Zsaitsits’s pieces exist in a space between illustration and caricature, pointing to the depth of the human psyche and mirroring the human soul.

The ever-popular live-painting section, also adjusted due to the weather, featured, amongst others, Australian artist Rone as well as Soenke Bush, Anna Traut and Mittenimwald.

 STROKE / MUNICH 2015

Terakaft takes to centre stage – again

It was a music extravaganza. The deep Saharan blues still boom – hallelujah. There was the screaming of devotees dancing up a storm. Their gig at the intimate arts space at Rich Mix for the launch of Terakaft's new album “Alone” was simple magical.  These guys can hold their own. They were cool, calm and tough in equal measure. It was quite a night, it was extraordinary.  Dressed in their desert attire, complete with robes, veils, and sandals – and, of course, armed with their electric guitars, they greeted an eagerly awaiting crowd to the spontaneous enchanting sounds of the Saharan desert rock-blues. Terakaft is fronted by Liya Ag Abil (aka Diara) and his nephew Sanou an outstanding guitarist, self-taught in the pure “Ishumar” tradition by his uncles Diara and Intiyeden – the two considered to be the backbone of the group were joined on stage by British guitarist, and the producer of their latest album Justin Adams.

Diara photographed by Sylvie Escande

They immediately had the crowd clapping, and tapping their feet to the deep Saharan rhythms. In an uncomplicated performance, Terakaft had the audience falling into a day dream-like state with most songs sung in Tamasheq, the language of the Tuareg people. But that didn’t prevent the crowd from fully grasping the performance. This is a real display of how music truly transcends cultural and language barriers. In an alternate reality, one where talent was shared out differently, this is the kind of music I would make. It’s truly modern and unique while being massively emotional. Diara the front man, lead guitarist and founding member talks to us about their trials and tribulations and how the band came to record their new album “Alone” across three countries. 

A very special and rare Terakaft performance at the Rich Mix yesterday (29/04/2015). How would you sum it up?

The concert was very good. And I know that because the public were dancing, jumping and screaming. I could see the joy and happiness being expressed. The energy was electrifying and we on stage felt it.

What in your opinion is the difference between Western audience and audience in Africa?

I must say this and stress that it is the same wherever we perform because when we play we can see the people happy. They are happy everywhere be it in any country in Africa or any country in Europe. People from any country just want to listen to good music and enjoy good music no matter where they come from. They all expect high standard of course. That’s been our experience. We always get people singing and dancing.

How long did it take for Terakaft to decide what the new album “Alone” would look like and what it will include?

For the “Alone” album it took us a bit more than one year, because it was done naturally between concerts and touring. It was not a straight studio-base thing. “Alone” was done in two pieces. First we recorded half of it at the famous Real World Studious in Bath, England. And the second half in France. And then we sent the complete album to Justin Adams, the British musician/producer who has delved deep into Tuareg music and Justin Adams is known for his work with Tinariwen another desert rock group. So Justine worked on the final mixing. So this Album encompass Mali, England and France. We all decided together to include only nine tracks and name the album “Tenere Alone”.

At the lunch album and gig show at the Rich Mix venue – you guys were just three on stage but it sounded like you were 20 and still manage to bring the crowd to a standstill. How did you guys managed to achieve that? 

It is a kind of mix between me and Sanou Ag Ahmed. Sanou is an outstanding guitarist. And when we play the energy we generate is just out of this world. And performing with Justin Adams who joined in with his guitar was magical. The show just exploded. We enjoyed it and the crowd did too. We felt it.

Since formed in 2001, where has been Terakaft desert rock band finest moment on stage in in all these years? 

There is a tricky question and a difficult one to answer. Because we have had many concerts I would label as finest. It is too difficult for me or for any members of the group to choose one or two. All I can say is that finest moment are many.

Are you guys still able to make your kind of music sculpted by the desert, weathered, dusty and relentless in this era of commercialism gone wild? Are you under any pressure from your record company to do some commercial and some of who you are?

No pressure whatsoever. Let your readers know this, we’ll never play that game. There’s no arrogance to that. We are still playing the same music as back when we were members of Tinariwen. Terakaft do not think about money first or commercial goal first. We still do sound that is purposeful and even more intense on the desert rock sound that is more symbolic of our lives and about our journeys. Terakaft do not believe in I am going to take your money for you to listen to me. Or we should sing something interesting to you for money. We believe that if we do good, beautiful, music it would sell. Money will come after. More young musicians need to hear that.

There are few countries with a richer musical tradition than Mali. And your country is awash with musical greats such as Amadou et Mariam, Rokia Traoré, Bassekou Kouyate and Oumou Sangaré to name but a few.  I wonder what’s the competition like?  What’s going on with the battle to be on top?

Yes Mali has many musicians to be proud of and of international standard, but there’s room for everybody and more. The more the merrier. I do not talk about competition for sure, because our kind of music, the desert tang rock music is not played by others. I am known as the master of the Saharan rhythm guitar. Together with Sanou my nephew we do music that no other band from the desert is closer to Terakaft.

We’ve been saddened to read about the recent political turmoil in the northeast of Mali, a country that’s known more than its fair share of political turmoil over the years. How has the turmoil affected the band?

The war has not really affected us that much. We still find time to write and perform. Nothing can stop us really. Two months ago, in February, we played in Mali for the peace concert which is an annual music festival in the desert. And for this festival we played three gigs in South Mali. No war can destroy music. Our music stands for peace, dreams, true friendships and more importantly tolerance.

Would any of the band member find it out of the ordinary to go solo as a one-off?

I have tried playing solo and I have played with many other musicians and I would admit, it was not the same but nowhere near out of the ordinary. But I really enjoy playing with my band. It is home for me anytime.

Music collaboration can be a tad tricky. Is there a musician or a group out there that Terakaft would like to collaborate with?

Oh yes there are many musicians out there that Terakaft would like to collaborate with. But for now we wish we could collaborate with Justine Adams our producer of the album Alone.  He is also a great friend of Tinariwen group and Terakaft group. Right now he is a fantastic guitar player as you can guarantee for at the Rich Mix concert. But Justine Adams is on tour at the moment. 

Does the group ever have a chill out time together outside music? Or is it all handiwork and no fun?

For us music is our lives and playground too. But, outside music I have a wife and four children and I keep many different types of animals in my farm that takes my mind off the crush of music. But between concerts and studio recordings I find little time to take care of my animals and really enjoy them in the fullest. But I am not complaining.

The group have achieved incredible success – how do you stay motivated now that the dream has come true? Do you feel that adrenaline you had when you got together in 2001?

For us the dream is like making things and the idea we get to continue making things is exciting. Yes and yes. We are still that pretty ecstatic to still be going through that level of joy at this stage in our life, I (we) never thought that would happen. The band formed in 2001 and we are still enjoying every minute and we still enjoy very much every bit of our profession.

There comes a time in every music group’s life when they need nothing more than a good sit down on a comfy chair and say I have down tools. I retire. Can you guys see that in the horizon sooner rather than later?

I don’t think there will be an epiphany moment the doors opening and saying it’s time for us to vacate. I know one day we’ll stop touring and making music and switch off from the music and just be there for our family.  But I do not know when we’ll do that and I cannot imagine retirement anytime soon. I still find myself writing songs. We have got enough for another album. The truth is that for sure that day will come but not without hesitation.  

‘Alone’ is scheduled for release May 11. If you missed them in London you can catch them next at the Attend Concert De Roma, Borgerhout, Belgium, 12th June 2015

TERAKAFT

Pictoplasma Festival 2015 | An interview with cofounder Lars Denicke

This week the world’s leading and largest Berlin-based conference and festival of contemporary character design reopened its doors for the eleventh year running with a playground of character designs for us to feast our eyes on. Kicking off with a talk by Helsinki based director and animator Lucas Zanotto, the festival showcases a plethora of talks, workshops and exhibitions by a stellar lineup of international artists, animators, graphic designers and more.

I caught up with co-founder Lars Denicke to chat about the festival, its origins and why Pictoplasma is that little bit more special than your average conference.

Pictoplasma and character design seem to embody a huge variety of different mediums, practices and domains, how would you best define the terms?   

Characters aim at our empathy and emotional involvement and function around the very essence of what makes something an image: that it gives us ourselves, the feeling of being looked at. They often have an animist quality, as if they were real and alive, or at least create belief in a virtual existence, as a character in a play.

Characters also function on the principles of abstraction and reduction, as if they were typographic characters, taking away all arabesque details and contexts to maximize a common denominator for us to relate to, neglect of cultural difference. A post-digital play with media is a common strategy; artists and creators play with the same character design in different media. Many, for example, have a digital background for creation, and a longing to leave it behind and experiment with more permanent media. Staging the same character over and over again gives it a virtual identity, each single picture adds to depict this virtual character that supposes to exist somewhere else

How can we use character designs as tools to improve our own understanding of the real world?

Firstly, it’s hard to define the real world, but it is true we feel characters play with our understanding of reality in creating the virtual. Given this, they can increase our understanding of realities being relative to others, interdependent, constructed and not solidly defined. In their animist quality, they tickle us to reflect on the essence of what being alive involves.

“They tickle us to reflect on the essence of what being alive involves.”

Tell me about the initial stages of Pictoplasma and then the Festival, how did it develop? You began as an online and print based publication, right?

In1999 Peter started Pictoplasma as a research website, he came from animation and was looking for a new generation of characters that were more appealing, with fewer targeted audiences, less slaves to the ever same narration. This led to publications.

In 2004, coming from cultural studies and inspired by discourses of the iconic or pictorial turn, I joined Peter with the idea to make a conference out of it. We were looking for a way to present the loud, varied and playful aesthetics in a modest setting, so we thought a conference and not a festival or convention would be best. Just 40 minutes for an artist to talk about his/her creation. We managed to stick to this formula, as these talks get very personal – there is always a reason why someone creates these characters, and it gets through in every talk. Gallery exhibitions and animation screenings were part of this event from the very beginning, which made it a festival.

From 2006-2009 we started to produce ourselves, firstly giving characters designed by other artists a corporeality through the hands of costume designers who passed them on to dancers to discover how a character would change personality when having a certain body; then with installations that played with the idea of creating a world for us to get immersed - this culminated in the exhibition Prepare for Pictopia (2009, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin).

In 2010 we created the Missing Link, a character reflecting on the Yeti myth, and investigated artistic strategies of community, tribes and following in the digital age; this led to the exhibition Post-Digital Monsters (2011, La Gaîté lyrique, Paris). In 2012-13 we focused on characters in visual communication, the terror of photographic realism, and the commercial character as mascot, (White Noise, La Casa Encendida, Madrid 2013).

And then in 2014, the celebration of a decade of the festival was done in correspondence with the time-honoured genre of the portrait gallery, again giving each character that shaped our festival a place in an exhibition that performed the idea of being pre-digital, as in much earlier, or a memory of the digital age, as in much later.

NICOLAS MENARD

What makes Pictoplasma different to other conferences? 

Pictoplasma encompasses all design practices – we don’t make a difference as such, we just follow characters, not the artists or concepts. Therefore it is open to all, it is not an elite fine art club as such. The contexts give the creation to the characters and we are accessible to all.

I think this is what is important. Often people are repelled by fine art, it’s an exclusive form of art, which character design tries not to be. Character design is a concept that is open to all and is rooted in the classic conference and exhibition style.

Is there a year that stands out for you?

2006 for me was a good year, the second big edition. It was that moment when you realise you’ve started something new. That feeling of continuity is very exciting. A bit like a puzzle, piecing it all together.

What is the theme for this year’s festival and the inspiration behind it?

Form Follows Empathy goes back to the basics of Pictoplasma and the empathic quality of characters. When everything gets so functional, tech-gadgety, planned characters remind us that we have to like things in order to be ready to interact. Obviously, it breaks with the Modernist credo (Form Follows Function), but not in a strict opposition: the graphic quality of many of the characters featured in the project obviously stand in a Modernist tradition.

German design is very serious and functional, with little space for fun at all. It is important to put a character on these things – it’s not just about pure function, you have to like it. Characters are there to remind us that it is not just about function but also appeal.

(Lars took the example of a mobile phone to demonstrate)  

Mobile phones are like big eyes that watch you. They are completely fixed on the eye and the way you perceive things (such as watching, learning, touching). All very perfect. The appeal is neglected here and I think that, in the long run, the appeal has to be in a more comprehensive set up. The phone is now our mobile companion but is it our best companion? They improve function but what about empathy? Is the phone the right device for this? Form Follows Empathy plays with this idea.

A very interesting thought...

How is the digital age impacting contemporary character design today?

We started our project 1999 when the Internet became available for the masses, and implied the promise of a virtual world. In a time where photography was not yet that widespread due to slow data transmission of modems, graphical characters were the inhabitants of this supposed virtual world. At that time, the digital age informed the way characters looked. This is obviously over: we can play with styles and media and diffuse them instantly through digital media, so the digital age now is less about aesthetics and how characters look, but more about distribution and diffusion.

       HIKARI SHIMODA

Now, the terror of photographic realism is everywhere - everything is depicted and consumed while we move. There seem to be less room available for characters, and yet the artistic production is blossoming. Maybe they function as an antidote to this photographic realism of today. And then there is the afore mentioned post-digital practice, where digital is just not interesting per se, but part of our reality and characters move from digital to analogue and back, or where everything is both at the same time.

You’ve managed to get some pretty impressive speakers on board – what is your selection process?

Step by step, we build up the line up. Research, chance, recommendations, even artists contacting us – this all leads to a growing watch list. In conversation of the two of us, Peter and I agree on the artists. Somehow, the fact that their characters are appealing to us in a very personal, empathic way is a secret rule. But the real love affair starts after we have met the creators and begin to get to know their characters.

“The real love affair starts after we have met the creators and begin to get to know their characters.”

Every year I worry that I won’t be affected in the same way that I have been before, but it always happens, both in terms of the artists as people, and their creations, the characters.

Special thanks to Lars for taking the time to talk to us 

Pictoplasma Festival | April 29 – May 3 2015

HAVING A FACE | An interview with Lucas Zanotto

Too often are we met with the inevitable question what is art? and with it, a need to categorise and define; the persistent search for an explanation behind every artistic endeavour that ever graced our planet. But was Van Gogh’s subliminal suicide note really at the heart of his turbulent skies and crossing pathways? Admittedly, it’s an exciting prospect, to unpick the secrets hidden beneath the brush strokes of an artist, or the thoughts deposited into a sculpture prior to its grand creation. We have an underlying urge to find meaning in everything and anything, but what if there was no meaning? Picasso called it the disease of our age, an age of a generation that is anything but practical and yet believes to be more practical than any other age.

So let’s, for a minute, imagine there was no meaning behind the painted canvas that hangs before us. That it was painted for its pure aesthetic value, only. Because it looks nice, and it’s fun?  

Richard Long didn’t create his line made by walking to over invest in the idea of art as a form of narrative, nor did he want to attain a grand theory of walking or art making, ‘they just seemed like good ideas at the time’ he said. And ideas that indeed show an appreciation for nature and its fine magnitude of landscapes.  

An artist certainly not short of this mentality is Italian born, Helsinki-based director/animator and designer Lucas Zanotto, whose works are a cross between analogue and the digital and stand out for their consciously indomitable, childlike playfulness. Among them is his ongoing photographic series HAVING A FACE. A project so effortlessly simple yet undeniably fun, Lucas uses painted plates and his camera to transform landscapes into playgrounds of friendly monsters, and boy oh boy, do we love it.

I had a quick chat with Lucas who recently opened the Berlin based contemporary character and illustration festival, Pictoplasma, to find out more.

You’ve gone from producing commercials, apps and all things digital, to a series of photographic images. What was the inspiration behind ‘Having a Face’? 

The Finnish countryside and having time to play around with things

Talk me through the process, did you go out actively looking for suitable landscapes and formations or was it very much a spur of the moment thing?

In general it is happening on walks and hikes spontaneously.  If I know I’m going for a little stroll in nice surroundings, I will keep these paper plates with me. If something pops up I put eyes onto it. For the Pictoplasma Opener, I scouted some locations, as it required more planning. 

The series has the potential to be turned in to an ongoing project (in another country, for example). Is this something that would appeal to you?

Yes. It is definitely already an ongoing project and has been for about 2 years now. I have been to so many countries to put eyes onto things.  It’s nice as I think this is probably something that will continue and stick with me, for a long period. It is so simple and timeless in a way.

The simplicity of the idea makes it very appealing and accessible to everyone. Who is your target audience?

I don’t think there is any specific target audience.

Your projects always invite us to think outside of the box. Is this an important factor for you?

It is. I think that is important in life in general. Looking a bit further, combining things, improvising, changing viewpoints… this aspect helps a lot.

‘Having a Face’ and previous designs such as your app Drawnimal seem to be encouraging us to move away from the digital screen and embrace analog. Would you agree?  

Yes, it feels good to leave the eyes to rest away from the screen every once in a while. I like analogue and tactile experiences, as they are, in a way, not as linear, not as perfect. There are always unexpected elements in it.

To see more of his brilliant projects, visit site www.lucaszanotto.com

 Pictoplasma

What book are you reading now?

As the saying goes there’s a book in everyone of us waiting to jump out. But not everyone could be Oscar Wild. That’s a relief I hear you cry!  Here comes support Africa Writes, the Royal African Society’s  annual festival of books and literature which showcases established and emerging literary talent from Africa and the Diaspora, is back for its fourth year running this summer (from Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th July) at the British Library.

Hannah Pool by Michael Leckie

The 2015 festival guarantees to bring together over 50 novelists, poets, publishers, translators, critics and other thespians in the world of African literature to open up the continent’s fertile literary terrain. The footnotes reads like so: “This year’s festival will once again present a unique opportunity for our audiences to engage with their favourite African writers and books, and to discover new ones through our exciting programme”.

      Ben Okri, publisher's photo

The festival would also feature book launches, readings, author appearances, panel discussions, youth and children’s workshops. Amongst this year’s headline draw are Nigerian-born Ben Okri, Booker prize-winning author and one of the most known and respected of African writers. Okri will be discussing his extensive range of literary work of 10 novels, including the Booker winner The Famished Road. And the controversial Journalist, author and commentator Eritrean-born Hannah Pool, hosting an evening of books and inspiration, when a selection of writers and personalities will share with the audience their favourite African books, varying between classics all through to their latest published work?

The festival will feature 13 sessions - both free and paid for. However, two sessions stands out for me:  Firstly, “Emergent Discourses on African Literature” (Free); because it deals with homogeneity, how publishers treat African writers as one and the same, ignoring the wide diversity of written and oral literature stemming from the continent and the diaspora. This session will feature presentations by PhD students and other researchers who are exploring different areas of this field of study - from the development of post-colonial literature through to present-day African narratives and the changing landscape of the publishing industry.

The second session that stands out for me is “Meet the Publishers”. A recently published study titled “What Happened” commissioned by the writer development agency “spread the word” to look into diversity in publishing,  revealed that Black and Asian authors in Britain are being ‘shoehorned’ by a predominantly white publishing industry into writing fictions that conforms to a stereotypical view of their communities. This session, “Meet the Publishers”, is apt as it is for unpublished writers of African origin to present their work to different publishing houses, to discuss what they look for when considering new work, share the do's and don’ts of pitching and other insider tips, and get professional feedback on the spot.

The organisers maintain that they deem it fit to organise a fourth because last year’s Africa Writes attracted over 1,500 attendees – many of whom had not attended Africa Writes (77%) or visited the British Library (28%) before. And now with over 30 sessions they are hoping for a record breaking attendance for 2015.

Royal African Society, 36 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0PD

Africa Writes