David Claerbout Interview: Virtual Image Making

TL;DR

David Clark Boat, a self-taught artist, delves into the realm of moving image animation, film, and virtual image making, emphasizing the hybridity of his work.

Transcript

my name is David Clark boat I'm an artist I don't know exactly what it is I'm doing it seems to me that I'm changing my ways all the time but I am a self-taught very hungry autodidact in in the domain of the moving image animation film video and what we could call virtual image making so welcome to our old Flemish House / studio well Friday nobody'... Read More

Key Insights

• 🤳 David Clark Boat's artistic practice is characterized by his self-taught approach and his exploration of moving image animation, film, and virtual image making.
• 💦 He emphasizes the hybridity of his work, combining traditional artistic mediums such as painting and drawing with modern technology.
• 💦 Clark Boat challenges traditional notions of time in his work, seeking a plurality of duration and exploring the concept of "heterochrony."
• 🤫 His pieces often involve the coexistence of contrasting elements, such as noise and silence, laziness and energy, or celebration and disaster.
• 👾 Clark Boat's work resists easy interpretation, aiming to evoke a sense of multiplicity and challenge the perception of time and space.
• 🥰 He rejects the idea of a singular, valuable artwork, instead embracing the ephemeral nature of his art that exists in the folds of time.
• 👾 The studio plays a crucial role in Clark Boat's creative process, serving as a dynamic space for collaboration and production.

Questions & Answers

Q: How does David Clark Boat describe his artistic practice and studio?

Clark Boat describes himself as a self-taught artist, emphasizing his background in painting and drawing. His studio is a dynamic space where discussions and work on projects take place, with a focus on in-house production.

Q: What influenced Clark Boat to explore unconventional artistic mediums and techniques?

Clark Boat felt discontented with the art world and sought to develop a language that defied traditional norms. He aimed to create pieces that defied easy interpretation and played with the perception of time and space.

Q: How does Clark Boat challenge traditional notions of time in his work?

Clark Boat aims to move away from the overdefined time constraints of cinema and digital media, seeking a plurality of duration he calls "heterochrony." He creates pieces with varying durations, from minutes to millenniums, to evoke a sense of multiplicity and challenge linear time.

Q: What inspired Clark Boat's work on the piece "King"?

Clark Boat's inspiration for "King" came from an archived image of a young, pre-fame Elvis Presley. He collected various images of Elvis's skin and used them to create a digital representation of him, exploring ideas of transformation and the meaning behind details within an image.

Key Insights:

• David Clark Boat's artistic practice is characterized by his self-taught approach and his exploration of moving image animation, film, and virtual image making.
• He emphasizes the hybridity of his work, combining traditional artistic mediums such as painting and drawing with modern technology.
• Clark Boat challenges traditional notions of time in his work, seeking a plurality of duration and exploring the concept of "heterochrony."
• His pieces often involve the coexistence of contrasting elements, such as noise and silence, laziness and energy, or celebration and disaster.
• Clark Boat's work resists easy interpretation, aiming to evoke a sense of multiplicity and challenge the perception of time and space.
• He rejects the idea of a singular, valuable artwork, instead embracing the ephemeral nature of his art that exists in the folds of time.
• The studio plays a crucial role in Clark Boat's creative process, serving as a dynamic space for collaboration and production.
• Clark Boat's work draws inspiration from diverse sources, such as archived images, film history, and personal experiences, resulting in thought-provoking and unconventional art.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• David Clark Boat is a self-taught artist who primarily works in moving image animation, film, and virtual image making.

• He emphasizes the hybrid nature of his work, drawing from his background in painting and drawing while incorporating modern technology.

• Clark Boat explores the concepts of time, duration, and heterochrony within his artistic practice.