This week, three artist interviews were released:
Ana Paula Oliveira
“A new project does not begin, it is a process that leaves a work to go onto another. It develops and grows until you want to get out in the world.”
With this, Ana Paula Oliveira answers the question made by critic and curator Alejandra Muñoz: In general, in your activity, how does a new project start?”
To exemplify, Ana Paula speaks about her installation “Ainda que te vi”. The inspiration came from the artist’s travels through Central Brazil, from observing heavy clouds, which the artist interpreted as suspended marble stones. “It was in my mind for a long time (…) This beautiful sky was not enough – I do not know if it is sky or suspended floor – there are all the relations we can establish.”
Watch the video:
Beto Shwafaty
Beto Shwafaty develops a research-based practice (on spaces, histories and visualities), which seeks to connect formally and conceptually political, social and cultural issues that are converging to the field of art. In this interview, he replies to a question by critic and curator Alejandra Muñoz: “In general, in your activity, how does a new art project start?”
The artist says he always starts from a research, that the kind of art he creates is based on that and on processes of information gathering, exploration of archives and randomness: “when you research for a project you find data that will end up giving rise to a new project”.
About how he carries out an artistic project, Shwafaty says: “I do not particularly have a work routine as an artist. My life is pretty hectic. I think my own practice as an artist reflects that. I do not repeat works, neither do I work with a lot of series. At each new project I try to think of what language and what materialization is the best option for what I am trying to communicate and build.”
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Toz
The graffiti artist Toz was born in Salvador, Bahia state, but lives in Rio and his characters are inspired by the modern urban life. In this video he answers a question by the also artist Cadu, who wants to know: “Where does life start and where does art end?”
Tomaz Viana, aka Toz, tells us that when he was a child, his mother used to take him to her Fine Arts lessons, and that his father took him to get his first tattoo when he was only nine.
He also talks of how his characters started being recognised and gained specific features, and of the differences of working in the streets or in a gallery: “driving on the street, you can never see a graffiti piece calmly. But in a gallery you have all the time in the world to sit and enjoy the work.”
Watch the video: