Sougwen Chung recently exhibited this captivating multimedia work at “Ghostly International: Of Art and Artifice,” our show at the Art Directors Club, NYC.
About the work, Sougwen writes:
Chiaroscuro is an installation piece that utilizes light as an artifice of visual perception. It explores the interplay of light and shadow on a dimensional drawing form. Strata of abstract, monochromatic line-work are suspended on a wall, giving off the illusion that lines themselves are extending beyond the flat plane. Coils of light are nested asymmetrically within the form, responding to the variations of sound in the environment and illuminating the surface with a pulsing ambiance. Projected light is mapped onto the exterior from a distance, revealing and obscuring the piece throughout the course of the installation.
To celebrate our latest release with Matthew Shlian, we recently collaborated on a feature video of the artist talking about his process in the studio. Ann Arbor-based director and producer Jakob Skogheim also captured some awesome time-lapse footage of Matt working on several pieces, including one from the new Extraction Series. Music provided by Shigeto turns the video into a veritable Ann Arbor hat-trick.
Charles Bergquist: Everyday Project
Charles Bergquist is a director, designer, and photographer based in San Diego, California. We’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Charles through his work on Matthew Dear’s “Slowdance” video and, more recently, his gorgeous video work for Tycho’s live performances.
Recently, we’ve been addicted to the steady drip of lush imagery featured on his Everyday Project. According to Bergquist, the Everyday Project is a “collection of original photography that would otherwise go unseen.” Here, we share just a few that have caught our eye, but we have to warn you, if you pay a visit to the project, the rabbit hole goes deep.
Sougwen Chung: Works in Progress
Today marks the release of Sougwen Chung’s second print series, Étude Op. 2, No. 1-4, for Ghostly International Editions. To coincide with this release, we asked Sougwen to give us a compass for where she’s heading next. (Click the images above for a slideshow and learn more about each image in her descriptions below.)
Whether it’s the result of restlessness, unbridled curiosity, extensive traveling, or simply the cumulative effect of all of these factors, the breadth of Chung’s work has surged in the past year. From a newfound fascination with origami to elaborate projection mapping and live visuals, these works in progress suggest that the artist we already esteem, is just getting started.
- Macro shot of the interior of a tessellated paper piece. Making connections between code-driven visuals and the simple materiality of building form with paper creasing and folding.
- A snapshot of a recent work in progress piece, entitled Prélude. Experiments with light projection on a planar surface.
- Still from a timelapse light sketch, made on my studio wall.
- Embrace of Indeterminacy framed. Violin, and korg nanocontroller I use while performing visuals for Sepalcure. Working on creating a piece that can integrate these three tools meaningfully, or at least, elegantly.
- Prélude intro, more here
- Drawings I’ve made over the years
- Another projection experiment, Optogenesis. This time on a hyperbolic paraboloid structure, accompanied by a track by Tim Hecker.
In the Wild: Sara Blask
“I’m of the spirit that beautiful things make your life better, especially when you live in a small space where the interplay of light and color can mean the difference between an apartment feeling tight and cramped, or open, bright and well-scaled. I spent two years living in Reykjavik, and have always been drawn to a Scandinavian design aesthetic predicated on clean, simple lines, functionality, light, and lots of white with bright pops of color. I now live in Brooklyn and my apartment is 375 sq. ft. of living space, plus another 400 sq. ft. of outdoor space. Considering the small scale of the living area, it means every choice of color and scale matters—from the size of the sofa to the length and depth of the sideboard to the scale of art on the wall.
“It‘s the law of nature that you can never find the perfect object or piece of art when you’re looking for it. I had bare walls for well over a year before discovering—and subsequently falling in love with—Matthew Shlian’s Process Series. My biggest regret is not buying the entire series, which had a limited production and is now of course sold out. The texture of the paper is really special, and I put tons of thought into how I wanted to frame the piece in such a way that you could see exactly how the paper was cut and assembled. I eventually settled on a three-dimensional Plexiglass box. Soon after I’d gotten my Process piece framed I discovered Michael Cina’s Burning City (I also own Cina’s full [original] Sound Motion series, two prints from his Four series, and several of his pen and ink sketches). Not only does it tie my entire apartment together, but it’s one of the things that makes me so happy to come home.”
—Sara Blask (Follow Sara on Twitter as well: @sarablask)
[ Send us pics of your Ghostly art and home collection to tgs@ghostly.com ]
(If you, or someone you know, would like to be considered for a feature in our In the Wild series, send us an email at tgs [at] ghostly [dot] com with the words In the Wild in the subject line.)
In Process with Andy Gilmore
Each time Andy Gilmore provides new work for release under Ghostly International Editions, we find ourselves newly amazed by his evolution as an artist. While the work speaks for itself, we remain ever curious about Gilmore’s processes. To help shed some light, we asked Andy a few simple questions about his approach.
[GI] In the past two years, your portfolio has grown considerably. To produce so much work, we imagine there must be one dozen Andy Gilmore clones working in a dimly lit studio 24 hours a day. What’s the reality?
[Andy Gilmore] The reality is there is but one of me working 10+ hours a day in a dimly lit studio—a lot can get done in 7300+ hours.
[GI] In addition to your increased output, we’ve witnessed a greater complexity to your compositions. We wouldn’t dare ask a magician to reveal his secrets, but could you shed some light on the process and time involved in creating one of your works?
[AG] Generally, I build a form/pattern in Illustrator line by line, piece by piece—values are then assigned across the form to create the illusion of depth and movement. I essentially then use Photoshop to develop the image as if it were film. This all can take days or hours.
[GI] Do you start with a particular feeling or direction you want the work to take, or does the shape develop organically? Principia, for example, appears to have some Indian or Eastern Asian undertones. Was this intentional from the outset?
[AG] Oftentimes I have a particular direction that I have been exploring and I just continue to build upon it. Overall, its a very Gestalt approach to image making—in that I just allow the suggestion of form to guide me along. Indian and Eastern themes certainly influence my thinking and make their way into work unintentionally.
[GI] Speaking of directions, where do you see your work heading? What interests you most at this very moment?
[AG] The work has moved in directions that I could never have anticipated so I can’t really say for sure. New questions are posed everyday that can lead to any number of new directions and opportunities to explore. Drawing always interests me most of all.
Painting Mountains with Sonnenzimmer
From their innovative gig posters to their lush textural prints, the Chicago-based Sonnenzimmer has been redefining America’s printmaking landscape for several years now. Founded by Nicholas Butcher and Nadine Nakanishi in 2006, the studio has built a loyal following (Ghostly included) based on their dexterous use of color, abstraction, and typography.
To mark the occasion of “Berg Bild,” a series of limited edition silk screen prints designed and produced by Sonnenzimmer for Ghostly International, we asked Nick and Nadine a few questions about their practice and the inspiration behind the new work.
(Adapted from an interview taken October, 2011)
In one sentence, how would you describe Sonnenzimmer to someone on a subway platform (or, in your case, the “L”)?
Sometimes we joke and say we are an art factory. But the truth is that we are a commercial graphic artist studio specializing in posters and publication design.
How do Chicago’s music and art scenes feed into your work as Sonnenzimmer?
An Interview with Paper Guru Matthew Shlian
We met Matthew Shlian at Ted X in Ann Arbor and were immediately bowled over by his mind-boggling work with paper. An MFA graduate of Cranbrook Academy, Shlian divides his time between teaching at the University of Michigan, mocking up new-fangled packaging options for billion dollar blue-chips, and creating some of the most inspiring paper art around. We love his work and think you will, too.
Why paper?
There is immediacy to paper. You may take a sheet and begin to work, or plan something out methodically. It is a medium with a memory and one with which you can naturally create a dialogue.
Describe a perfect day in the studio.
I wake up early but not tired and walk to the studio. As I arrive there are packages of art supplies waiting for me which I cannot recall ordering. I make an egg bagel sandwich and hang out with Ira Glass for the next couple of hours while working on new ideas. I have a mild breakthrough on some piece which I know will lead to more work later on. My studio mates drop by in the afternoon, they have brought a bag of cider donuts and want to share.
“Color Remains a Mystery to Me”: An Interview with Andy Gilmore
For more than a year now, Ghostly has had the privilege of working with the incredibly gifted Andy Gilmore, whose color infused compositions are virtually unrivaled in the world of design.
Living in Rochester, New York (a 6 hour drive from NYC), Andy remained something of a mystery for our first several months working together. To provide a glimpse into his work for Ghostly International Editions, we decided to pin Andy down for a short Q & A.
(Adapted from an interview taken August, 2011)
Tell us about your first memory.
Drawing is at the center of a lot of my childhood memories, the most profound of which is watching my father draw. I remember being astonished in watching his lines take form into realistic depictions of horses
So you were into skateboarding, how did that affect you?
Yes, I starting skateboarding in 1987 or so, in the era of H-street. Skateboarding has introduced me to a lot of great and talented people that have guided me on my personal and professional path.
In 2002, an old friend from skateboarding offered me a job resizing print ads for C1rca footwear and Forum snowboards in Southern California. Fourstar was the beginning of working with the computer for me and I will always be indebted to the wildly talented creative staff that I learned so much from.
An Interview with Michael Cina
(Interview taken May, 2011)
[Sam Valenti] Something you said that has stuck with me was: “The future of art is artists.” How has the role of the artist changed?
[Michael Cina] I feel that artists should have no boundaries when it comes to medium. If you look at the crew from the Bauhaus, they were working in every arts profession and excelling in them all. I think when you work like that, each medium you explore influences the other. It is an artist’s role to use everything at his disposal to push thought and limits. I feel capitalism has changed that aspect of art. If you look at the difference between artists today and artists 70 years ago, you will see stark differences in their body of work. Artists used to be so robust in their interests and exploration, and that is what excites and inspires me. We are in an extremely pivotal time where the public is taking back art. This will be a huge shift for every aspect of “art.”
[SV] We’ve entered an era where art is often disembodied from its maker. A result of Google Image Search and re-blogging becoming a craft in itself. Does the web signal the death of authorship?
[MC] I have a lot of thoughts on this. The Internet has created a level platform for people to share, and recent technology has made it more open than ever. Your voice is equal to anyone else’s now and the rules for art and its boundaries are being completely rewritten.
