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JOEL FEAR FRESH MEAT, RAW TALENT A B I G A I L L EG G E T
It’s 2013. We did it. Some of us graduated, the world didn’t end and we finally had a half decent summer. I look to this year with more zeal than ever, carrying with me the remnants of significant learning curves discovered in the past annum and the beautiful memories of those gone before us in 2012. Felicity Wren, an extremely talented and gorgeous Massey photography student, was one of the first people I ever wrote about in this section and through her passing it has helped me realise and further my own stigma of how important it is to appreciate our peers and give kudos where kudos is deserved. It gives me even more drive to go out there and meet those students who need to be exposed for their talents, so Fliss, this column is for you now. Onwards and upwards, this next year should reveal a flurry of new talent to show for this section. Enjoy brothers and sisters.
Massivemagazine.org.nz
It’s official, The Fear is here. I’m a sucker for Joel’s work to be honest. Its fresh, innovative and a sick way to immortalise some of the craziest and raddest ongoings in Wellington’s scene. I first came across Fear’s video edits through some friends on Facebook and was struck but the ability that these edits had to make you excited about art and music in a way that is removed from static imagery yet integrated at the same time. Living in Wellington for the past three and a half years, I can whole-heartedly say that these videos encapsulate what it is like to be a young kiwi adult living in the eccentric capital. According to the man himself, he makes “… little edits based around an event or project from various artists, musicians, idiots and geniuses...basically anyone who is motivated and has some interesting/ bizarre ideas.” On previous projects, he’s worked closely with the dynamic duo Brynn Chadwick and Denelle Macdonald as well as the highly respectable Andrew Steel and Shannon Rush. All of which have made for some insane collaborations of a seriously high calibre. In terms of influences, Fear lists Harmony Korine (screen
play writer of Kids, 1995 and director of Gummo 1997) and early Videograss snowboard films as a driving factor in his work. The medium of video can lead to some pretty crazy and volatile situations (I’m looking at you here Kim Kardashian) and Joel can recount a particular time in the artistic process where things took a turn for the weird. He was “attempting to film a shoot for Shannon Rush in the small hours of Sunday morning on Castle Point Beach. I’m not exactly sure what happened but I ended up on the other side of the camera, stark naked with a few others and things got real weird real quick. The whole weekend was actually pretty unusual but at the time it was standard practice, good wholesome fun.” After that, I’m sure there are going to be plenty more great stories to tell the Grandkids as well as proving the energy and enthusiasm that can only be attributed to videographing. Future projects for Joel include “working on a vid promoting the EP release of a local Wellington band The New Brides and some supersecret stuff way down the track…”. I can’t hardly wait to see what this year will bring for the Fear.