Themes/Identity: Using identity as a tool for creativity
Graphic design tutor Anoushka introduces you some artists whose identity informs the way they work creatively.
Video Picks: Artists Martine Syms and Kahlil Joseph- Memory Palace
- Written byRuby Cedar
- Published date 22 June 2018
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| Photograph: Martine Syms and Kahlil Joseph
This video is a result of Martin and Kahlil’s collaboration. Together they depict singer Alice Smith’s discovery of a photo album – an example of the type of ‘orphaned’ media that interests Syms. Who are the characters in this story, are they related to Alice, Martine or Kahlil? Does it matter? It’s up to you to decide.
Memory Palace, 2015
Video: single channel video, colour and sound, running time: 2min, 21sec, courtesy of the artists.
Martine’s work focuses on how we interact with images and what they mean to us. She also looks at the distance and difference between a real lived experience and its representation, which can be related to how we use social media to constantly document our day-to-day lives. Is it an authentic portrayal of our identities? And where does the need to do this come from? Martine made another piece entitled ‘everythingiveeverwantedtoknow.com’ in which she compiled three years worth of her google searches as a kind of diary entry.
Kahlil Joseph’s work dabbles with music video. He’s created shorts for Kendrick Lamar, Flying Lotus, FKA Twigs and Beyoncé to name but a few. He deconstructs found footage and merges it with his own. He does the same with the accompanying sound or audio, slowing elements down to suit the pace of the imagery.
Advisory note: some of Kahlil Joseph’s work includes violent sequences, view with caution.
