ART QA Magazine SUMMER 2015 by Art QA Magazine

ART QA ISSUE #1 - SUMMER 2015 ART QA - QUARTERLY MAGAZINE - FOUR ISSUES A YEAR SPRING - SUMMER - AUTUMN - WINTER

6 EDITOR’S TEASHOP 9 FEATURED INTERVIEW 18 ART QA NOTE TO ARTISTS 20 SOAPBOX 23 INTERVIEW 29 REVIEWS 33 UPCOMING EVENTS

EDITOR: DAVID MANCINI CO-EDITOR JONI LOWE PUBLISHER - ART QA ART DIRECTION: PAIGE NEWSONE STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER: LOREN FIEDLER INQUIRES FOR ADS, STORY-IDEAS OR ARTIST SUBMISSIONS SEND TO: STAFF@ARTQAMAGAZINE.COM WWW.ARTQAMAGAZINE.COM Regarding unsolicited, manuscripts, photographs, and other materials. If you wish to have a story considered for publication in our magazine please email us and include your contact information and please provide in the emails subject header one of the sections or topics you are interested in such as, interviews or art stories section. Please allow up to three weeks for a response. ART QA and staﬀ is not responsible for unsolicited submissions.

ART QA

EDITORâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S TEASHOP

ART is inspirational. Art is insightful. Art is motivational.

ART QA Magazine is a new art publication located in Brooklyn, New York and run by a small group of art professionals, architects, commercial photographers, writers and art lovers. Our aim is simply to cultivate, foster and encourage broader conversations to and between those viewing, working with and making art. In this way we wish that our publication supports the art community both locally and internationally.

We thank you for checking out ART QA.

- D. MANCINI

I came across Fabrice Mabillot’s work several months ago while having lunch in the East Village. I was with an artist with whom I was trying to get an interview for another magazine, and it was at that time that the artist introduced me to Mabillot’s work. So, a few weeks later I reached out to Mabillot to see if he would like to do an interview and after several days of biting my nails, I got an email back from him agreeing. I find his photographic work not only beautiful, but full of life and a sense of peace, and that’s why I wanted to interview him. You can view his work in person in October at La Galerie du Pont Neuf in Paris.

THE INTERVIEW AQA: Where do you live? Paris? MABILLOT: Between Paris and the Mountains in Savoie (Alpes). AQA: How long have you lived in there? MABILLOT: I have had my house there for a long time… but in the last 2 years, I try to be there all the time, when I’m not doing a photo shoot in Paris. AQA: What do you love about where you live? MABILLOT: Calm, nature, and the space…. space, I have the biggest garden of the world. AQA: How long have you been doing photography? MABILLOT: I started in late 2006. Then in 2008, I started my personal work, which is sort of in the opposite direction. 10

AQA: What do you mean? MABILLOT: I did a lot of commercial work for the first two years, but then I realized that for me to not get frustrated, I needed parallel work for myself. AQA: Did you go to university? What did you study? MABILLOT: I had always been a very bad student. I quit school at 14 years old. Then I studied graphic design in Paris for 3 years at Ecole Superieure des Arts Modernes. AQA: What was your first photography job or project? MABILLOT: My first client thought I was a real photographer. However, I had never worked for any companies before. We went to Spain with 3 models (which was not easy to compose images with) for a lingerie catalog. The concept was street fashion, which shows lingerie as fashion accessories. I did vacation photos with total carelessness. Once back in Paris, the images met with a lot of success.Â Lingerie pictures were very very classic. My pictures showed girls with the idea of being in bars, on the street, the market etc. This was a revolution in the world of images of underwear. AQA: If you could, how would you define your artwork? MABILLOT: Honestly, it's very difficult for me to define. I try to capture what I like and what touches me. AQA: Can you describe your creative process, from forming ideas to the finished product? MABILLOT: For my personal work, I work on instinct. It's very rare that I know exactly what I'll do before a session. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s based on the mood of the day, the person I photograph, light and space. For commercial work, it's totally different. I reflect well in advance, I construct images and a story in my head. On the day of shooting, I make sure to get as close to that idea as possible. In short, the images take shape in my mind before. Taking pictures is almost secondary, I mean the "work" is before shooting. AQA: How do you know when a work is done? MABILLOT: I never know. Maybe when I look at the picture and I have the same emotion as at the time of the shoot, a week, 6 months, 1 year later. I do not know. AQA: What themes do you explore in your work? How do you work with models to get what you want in the image? MABILLOT: How, without asking anything or very little, the girls are able to give something to show their fragility, strength and power, all without artifice, as simple as possible. AQA: What is your next project? MABILLOT: I have several projects that I have already started. A new book and a new exhibition at the GALERIE DU PONT NEUF in Paris in October.

PHOTOGRAPHIC ARTWORK BY FABRICE MABILLOT

AQA: When it comes to exhibitions, how do you pick works to show? MABILLOT: I pick the pictures I love. Sometimes I think I am the only one who loves them. AQA: Do you like doing exhibitions of your artwork? And if not, why? MABILLOT: It’s a joy for me to show my work, even though I'm rather shy and it takes me a lot of prior effort. Meeting people who like my work is for me the greatest reward and it gives me an incredible energy. AQA: What other photographers have inspired you or influenced you? MABILLOT: D. Hamilton, Jeanloup Sieff, Claude Nori (my editor), Bill Brand and others. AQA: Do you consider your work erotic? And why, please explain? MABILLOT: Not really, I rather feel like a portraitist. My images are not so erotic if you look in detail. All girls have something very sensual. This is what we see in my photos. It's not something I built, I only show what I see. I do not do much. AQA: Have you ever had a mentor? MABILLOT: Not really. I am autodidact. I have talked a lot with Claude Nori over the last few years. He gave me some keys. AQA: Do you like to do fashion photography as much as your own work? MABILLOT: They are completely different. AQA: You worked with the artist The Mazeking, what was that like? MABILLOT: I loved this collaboration. A very good meeting. I do not understand why artists do not work more often on joint projects or collaborations. The project with The Mazeking, it was a beautiful discovery and a friendship was born. We'll do something together, I do not know what it will look like, but I know it will happen. AQA: Do you see photography as a fine art? Some people seem to have a hard time seeing it. MABILLOT: Cinema is art, but not the photo? Cinema is a series of pictures, so yes. AQA: What do you think about the state of art criticism? MABILLOT: It's all very subjective, I think. I make my own criticism about what I love or not. 13

AQA: What do you think about the art market? And the high prices for artworks? MABILLOT: Why not? I hope to sell and live, travel and even photograph again and again. I expect my first sale for 20,000 euros, so my children have benefits. AQA: Do you shoot with film or digital cameras? MABILLOT: I shoot film, polaroid, digital and with many different cameras. AQA: Do you like digital or film more? MABILLOT: I prefer film, because I do not know exactly what the images are and I’m expecting and waiting to experience the images. I work with the film like the Polaroid, I shoot 2 poses, 3 poses and I change. In the end, I make the choice of one image. Digital totally changed the approach of photography. AQA: Do you have a favorite camera? MABILLOT: Yes, my Pentax 6x7 which I started with. I love the sound of its trigger, vision and format. If I had to keep only one, it would be my Pentax. I have many sorts of cameras. I just bought an old Lubitel II. It’s funny and there is something to vintage images that’s much better than my iPhone application. I like these as well: SX70, Leica M6, Olympus mju, OM10, TOYO 4x5 inch and so on. AQA: What artists influence you? MABILLOT: Music and movies have a great influence on me. AQA: From seeing your work, I take it that you truly enjoy working with women, is that correct? MABILLOT: Totally in love with the women. AQA: Why do you take photographs of only women? Or have you done work with men? MABILLOT: I need to be a little seduced. But I work with men for commercial work sometimes. AQA: It seems that you travel a lot from the photos I’ve seen. What is traveling about for you? MABILLOT: Freedom. Traveling is to be more free. It feels like anything is possible when you are somewhere else, when you are anonymous. Everything inspires you. We must live in emotions that capture us. Everything looks different, the sky, walls, girls, feelings.

AQA: Do you have a favorite place to travel to? MABILLOT: I like to be somewhere else. I’ve made many trips to West Africa and to Asia these last many years. I took great pleasure in NYC working on my series "CHELSEA GIRLS". The world seems so vast, I need time. AQA: Do you have any plans to do an exhibition or another project in New York City anytime soon? MABILLOT: I would really like to be exposed in NY. I would like to do a show at the CLICK Gallery. I love that place. AQA: What’s your favorite food for a meal? MABILLOT: I am very greedy and I love everything. I'm happy with what I have on my plate. Thai cuisine and good French dishes. I love all. AQA: What’s your favorite dessert? If you have one, why? MABILLOT: I'm not really a dessert person, but a cup of coffee after a meal is essential. I am a caféinoman!!! AQA: I see in your work a number of references to paintings, why is that? MABILLOT: I think it's because of the Polaroid that I use, very light and dark. This is what gives it the look of a painting. AQA: How much do paintings, or other forms of art, influence or inspire your work? MABILLOT: Women, music and cinéma all inspire. Cinéma has a great influence. Hard not to mention “In the Mood for Love”, the frames are exceptional with perfect light, but also all the Italian cinema of the ‘70s. All that I've seen in the last 30 years has an influence on my work and my way of seeing.

- D. Mancini

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If you are interested in placing an ad, simply email your contact information and a link to your website to staff@artqamagazine.com Space is limited, so get your ad in early because once we have the four free artist ads for each issue thats it. We will not accept or publish the overflow. However, you can request that we consider your ad for the next issue of the magazine.

ART QA - QUARTERLY MAGAZINE - FOUR ISSUES A YEAR SPRING - SUMMER - AUTUMN - WINTER

SOAPBOX - CONTRIBUTOR Reflection on the NYC Art Scene of Today BY ANNA DOWELL I moved to New York three years ago with one of the major reasons being that NYC has one of the best, if not the best, art scenes in America. Being a lover of art and involved in the art world made this a top reason to be in New York. Now, three years later I’m starting to wonder, ‘Is this really the best the U.S. has to offer?’ I am disappointed about a lot of aspects I see here in the popular art scene. First of all, why are so many galleries so stuck in the past? What I mean by this is- most of the art being shown is either some sort of retrospective of famous artists that were recognized years ago, a recycling of the top 10-15 or so artists we keep hearing about for the past decade, or the new artists to the scene that happen to squeeze in are mostly showing work that is stuck in the ideology and theory from the movements of the ‘60s and ’70’s. I know there are artists out there making innovative, progressive work, so why aren’t these artists being recognized and exhibited? It’s 2015, is this really the best the art world can offer? Also, I am so tired of the majority of artists shown in galleries, art fairs, and museums here still being mostly ‘white’/Caucasian men? Really? Is this all the diversity we get? Come on, it’s ridiculous. Oh, and for those token artists that happen to get in that don’t fit this ‘white'/male’ box, 99% guarantee what is shown of their work will be pigeonholed or they will be labeled and separated. It is extremely disappointing that this is as far as we’ve come in the art world of today. One reason the ideas and theories of post-war America are so strong in today’s art world is because this was an exciting time in history. Exciting new things were happening, changing at such a quick rate and the art reflected this back to us. Artists were taking risks and being noticed for it. You had the abstract art, pop art, performance art, happenings, and conceptual art all being created and exhibited. What’s happening in our world today is also exciting. As a matter of fact, it’s a super exciting time in history with all sorts of change happening. Where are our current movements? Why aren’t they being noticed? Yes,

there is now a much larger population and with the rise of art programs in colleges and universities there are much more practicing artists out there, and therefore there is more mediocre work to sift through to find the great stuff. Thus it may take more effort to find the ‘diamonds in the rough’; the artists that shine like Picasso did in his day, Pollock in his, and Basquiat in his day. However, the new, innovative artists of today are out there and the world needs to see them. If the big and midlevel galleries weren’t so concerned with merely art as a commodity, they might be willing to take more risks and truly appreciate the great work of this time. I’d love to see a popular art scene that takes notice of the experimental, innovative work of today. Work that has roots in the past but is creating a future is so powerful. Art has in the past, and can still now, change the whole conversation of art and our perspective of what is happening in our world today. What the public eye is allowed to see changes what they talk about, which changes their mindset. This also affects art history down the line. It’s time that more of the work being shown and recognized reflects life in today’s world. This is an exciting time in history and the work that reflects this age deserves more. Think of all the artists out there working, that people want to see, that if not shown, won’t make money in this lifetime or even get to be seen by the public.. The space for them to be shown doesn’t need to be limited anymore. The general public deserves to see this hidden work and have it be part of their experience and conversation. Will we be able to notice the great artist voices of today before it’s too late? When I think of New York, I think of a progressive, open place, full of diversity, a city of possibilities, with various ideas and culture. New York City’s art scene is surprisingly lagging in this department. How can we have a truly great art scene in NYC or anywhere in America that shows diverse work reflecting the people of this city, country, and world? I’d love to see an art scene that is open and more accurately reflects what is going on now, in this day and age.

ISSUE #2 THE AUTUMN ISSUE SEPTEMBER 2015

FEATURING ARTISTS WORKING IN ALL MEDIUMS AND MEDIA. PAINTING, SCULPTURE, PHOTOGRAPHY, DANCE, AND MORE IF YOU’RE AN ARTIST OR WRITER AND WISH TO BE FEATURED OR CONTRIBUTE AN ARTICLE TO ART QA SIMPLY SEND A BRIEF EMAIL TO staff@artqamagazine.com 22

ARTIST CHIKA YOSHII We came across Yoshii’s work first about a year ago while bouncing around the Bushwick Open Studios weekend. I found her work interesting and moving. So when it came time to interview some artists, I thought of her, which says something about how her work sticks in the mind.

THE INTERVIEW AQA: You were born in Kagawa, Japan. What was that like? YOSHII: It was a very easygoing, rural town I grew up in. I thought it was boring, but after leaving there, and also leaving Japan, I find there’s so much beauty and unique, interesting art. It’s good to be at a distance to see things, rediscover. I'm still learning how I’m influenced. AQA: You went to Kyoto Art Center. What did you study there? YOSHII: Textile. Art can't be a career, I thought. AQA: When you first got here, was it easy for you? YOSHII: It wasn't so hard. Somehow, I felt it was similar to Osaka. So many foreign people mixed together. AQA: When did you move to Brooklyn? YOSHII: In 2012. AQA: So you’ve lived in Brooklyn for three years now? YOSHII: Yes. AQA: Do you like Brooklyn, and NYC in general? YOSHII: I love it here because there are always so many opportunities, and people are interested in art even if it’s by someone not famous.

AQA: What do portraits mean to you? YOSHII: Very interesting and challenging work. AQA: You do a lot of portrait paintings. What is it about portraits that you find interesting? YOSHII: It’s the same reason as with flowers. It captures my attention in the way they show their life force from inside. I'm always curious what the energy is which drives creatures. AQA: You’ve done sculptures, which are, in a sense, portraits. What are they about? Are they the same as the paintings? YOSHII: I thought it'd be interesting to make the image in 3D. So it’s same with paintings. AQA: How long does it take for you to complete a painting? YOSHII: Sometimes an hour and sometimes two days. AQA: What about the face interests you? I mean, why such a focus upon the human face? YOSHII: I guess faces, eyes, show something else inside the material body, like the spirit or original energy in the body as a container. AQA: I believe you said once that when you paint, it’s like a meditation. What do you mean? YOSHII: I try not to think, but to capture the inspiration. And let something come inside me, and work on painting. It’s like meditation, being in a zone, but it doesn’t easily happen. AQA: Do you do meditation in the more traditional sense, like Zen or something? YOSHII: I do meditate in the way I studied. There are so many ways to meditate, so it can be various. Painting, dancing, walking, anything can become meditation if you could have a moment with no thinking. AQA: Do you think that making art is spiritual? YOSHII: I think everything can be spiritual if we can follow the heart. Because when you do that, you get more energy from your original spirit, I believe. AQA: Do you see your works in any way like a koan? A question for contemplation? YOSHII: Not sure, but I guess it’s like so many people, now and in the past, questioning, trying to be enlightened. I want to know the truth too. AQA: Did you study calligraphy? YOSHII: No. but I'd like to. AQA: Do you feel that female artists are given equal respect in the art world? YOSHII: I'm not sure. The art world can be different in different places.

AQA: What do you think or believe the role of art is? YOSHII: I think art can inspire people to be free, and to see how many more possibilities we've got. AQA: Are you interested in collaborations with other artists? Why, or why not? YOSHII: Maybe. I don't know yet. AQA: Let’s talk mediums. What are your favorite mediums, like oil paint, acrylic, wax, etc.? YOSHII: Oil paint. AQA: How has the NYC art sense changed since you’ve been involved? YOSHII: I don't know. Bushwick has become very expensive and there are not many areas for emerging artists to live. AQA: Who are your favorite artists? YOSHII: Egon Shiele, Dumas. I feel they can focus on the moment and so they never overdo. AQA: Do you paint on canvas or paper mostly? YOSHII: Canvas, but I’ve started to paint on paper recently.

- D. Mancini

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ART QA - QUARTERLY MAGAZINE - FOUR ISSUES A YEAR SPRING - SUMMER - AUTUMN - WINTER

CINEMA SPOT What film to see? How about this cinema work by Francois Truffaut.

Above: Still from - L’Histoire d’Adele H. (1975)

REVIEWS

ARTIST Haluk Akakce Sometimes, thinking of New York’s Chelsea gallery district brings to mind big-box shows, glamorous spectacle and a certain lack of subtlety. But on the other side of town, through June 21, the Richard Taittinger Gallery in the far less-assuming East Village is hosting Haluk Akakce’s first U.S. presentation in nearly a decade, and the pairing is certainly appropriate. Come Midnight exhibits Akakce’s new work focusing on “the delicate balance between the earth and spirit world,” featuring video, paintings and drawings that seem invite an inquisitive spirit in the viewer, rather than demand it of them. Akakce’s fully and semi-monochromatic compositions make liberal use of negative space, giving his forms plenty of breathing room and allowing the eye to roam. Alternating between flowing, freehanded lines in a manner reminiscent of Zen calligraphy and cleaner, Notan-like mechanical forms, they present for the viewer an abstract take on a variety of themes and archetype portraits. Subtlety and intricacy go hand in hand with these. Regardless of whether one is inclined to delve into more contemplative dialogues or not Akakce describes himself as an artist whose works “give the feeling of space and infinite time” - the work does have a way of drawing your attention and quietly holding it.

Images: “Come Midnight” exhibition - Richard Taittinger Gallery, NY, NY

- Jack Ender

REVIEWS

ARTIST Jeppe

Hein

The overarching theme in Jeppe Hein’s work deals with encouraging viewers to re-examine themselves in some way. Many of his pieces employ mirrored or reflective surfaces and optical devices that attempt to play with one’s perspective of the space one occupies and how one relates to it. Art can play a significant role in the encouragement of introspection, and we need artists who are driven to fill that role. That’s why I’m behind Hein’s concept, but it’s time to up his game. The premise of conceptual art - that the idea is more important than the object itself - has all but lost its impact overall. Its avantegarde nature has long since given way to the shock of spectacle. Worthwhile as it is, Hein’s concept means to encourage in the viewer a cognizance of being but falls victim to the visual impact of his sculptures, coming off as an imposition rather than a quality inherent in the work. It’s all too easy for one’s attention to become arrested and captured by what one sees externally. The experience of mirrored sculptures that produce labyrinthine, fractured reflections of the space in which the viewer finds themselves is not unlike that of a funhouse at an amusement park. A two-way mirror rather dryly combines the viewer’s reflection with the platitude “ALL WE NEED IS INSIDE” glowing from behind it in bold neon. If there’s a highlight, it’s Invisible Eye, which superimposes a flame

Image: “All We Need Is Inside” exhibit at 303 Gallery, NY, NY

on the viewer’s reflection in the middle of the forehead (when positioned properly in front of the piece) as a clever reference to meditative practice. In this more subtle imagery, which suggests a reason to visually shake things up that’s more compelling than the shock of spectacle, this writer’s interest in what the artist is trying to say is piqued.

- Jack Ender

ISSUE #2 THE AUTUMN ISSUE SEPTEMBER 2015

ART SPOT

ABOVE: PAINTING BY ARTIST ZAO WOU-KI

ZAO WOU-KI IS OUR ARTIST TO CHECK OUT FOR THIS SUMMER ISSUE.

UPCOMING - THINGS - PLACES - EVENTS BRIC - FREE CONCERTS

TRENTON DOYLE HANCOCK

Oh yeah, free music concerts in the warm weather of summer in the great outdoors. Sound good? Well then you can get yourself over to Prospect Park in Brooklyn any week of this summer and enjoy some great music, good food and a little summer fun. All Summer.

Skin and Bones, 20 Years of Drawing chronicles the foundation and evolution of Hancock’s twodecade career, comprised of drawings, collages and works on paper. Through June 28 at the Studio Museum in Harlem.

bricartsmedia.org/events/performing-arts

http://www.studiomuseum.org/exhibition/ trenton-doyle-hancock-skin-and-bones-20years-drawing

THE NYC POETRY FESTIVAL

FRIDA KAHLO: Art. Garden. Life.

One island, two days, three stages. Governor’s Island plays home to 250 poets from around N YC ’s b o ro u g h s t o m e e t , m i n g l e a n d collaborate. And, of course, read poetry. July 25-26, 2015.

Examine the influences of plants and wildlife in Kahlo’s work at the New York Botanical Garden, featuring a dozen paintings and works on paper as well as a reimagining of her famed garden and studio, Casa Azul in Mexico City. Now Through November 1, 2015.

http://newyorkcitypoetryfestival.com/

http://www.nybg.org/frida/

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THANK YOU!