Q&A med Dave White – en kunstner fortæller et og andet om at være kreativ

Jeg fik tilbudt at lave et interview med kunstneren Dave White – men tiden var knap, og dagen besat til anden siden. Jeg havde ikke hørt al verden om manden før, men  han er blevet sammenlignet med Andy Wharhol. Det er både fint og flot, men måske også lidt farligt. Mød manden, der er nostalgiker og hør hans tip til hjembyen Liverpool og hans syn på ure. Skrivelsen er på engelsk – I hope you understand…

Just shoe it - Mr. White har arbejdet sammen med store brands i øvrigt. Sell out? Det får du svaret på længere nede.

Dave – it’s always strange to interview someone when not sitting face to face. Could you tell me, who the artist Dave White is?
– Husband, runner, gamer, collector, music lover, coffee consumer and painter of images in a dynamic and explosive style.

White i færd med Americana - der arejdes med andre ord...

You graduated in 1994, but you were painting before. Where would you have been today without the three years at John Moores university?
– I had a wonderful experience at University and made the most of every day I spent there. Regardless of my education, I would have always have painted. I guess being painter is in your blood, I have always made images.

Americana maleri med western islæt

When I heard the name of your current exhibition – Americana – I was quiet sure that you were American, but your British. I was quiet surprised to see that the paintings are featuring cowboys and indians – what’s the story of your fascination?
– All of my subjects are of things I have a deep connection to or profoundly affected me as a child. Childhood is like being a sponge, images, sounds, films, and all sensations form the basis for what affects you. I was always fascinated with American culture, and long before I could read or write as a very small boy, I was incredibly moved by visual sources such as movies and comic books, American design and culture. The unexplained and unknown emotions of love and hate, coupled with raw human existence of pain and death and the struggle for survival fascinated me. The Americana collection is the culmination of this from all sides. The frozen moments of unexpected events and raw human emotion coupled with a celebration of ones environment and the importance of animals in culture, are a few of the themes I am exploring.

Helt anden stil og langt mere poppet. Jeg er glad for den slags.

I read that you’re also collecting stuff like Star Wars figures and vinyl toys – are you nostalgic?
– Extremely, I am surrounded by things that remind me of past times and this fuels my work.

Studietid...

By the way – the Warhol comparison; surely is a thumbs up to you and your work, but don’t you feel like trying a completely new “style”, just to show other sides of you?
– The Warhol comparison is of course flattering but, I feel is only relevant to the fact that we both explored objects of popular culture in our work, I would hope my personal use of my chosen medium of impasto oil paint is unique.

Mere Americana. Nu med kvinde og gevær.

What will the next project feature?
– I have only just scratched the surface with Americana and have a long journey ahead, spending time in Arizona really inspired the direction and I can see the vision of the direction clearly.

Det er ikke en Warhol suppe, men en White burger.

When is “someone” an artist?
– When they have a need and uncontrollable desire to make, write, compose, design or create their ideas.

Rodeo-realation fra Americana-serien.

I have to know something – what watch are you wearing?
– I never wear watches, as time is a restrictive factor.

Iskage.

You’ve been working with brands like Coca-Cola and Nike – thumbs up from here. What do you think about the fuzz about other artists seeing jobs like that as “sell out”?
– I am extremely honoured and grateful for the opportunities I have had to work with such incredible companies on collaboration projects. All of my joint ventures have been relevant to the series, and have been given free reign, I would never work on anything I felt didn’t compliment or was unethical. For as long as there has been art there has been commercial collaboration, Dali and Alka Seltzer, Warhol, Lichtenstein, Calder are just a few who created Art cars for BMW, and Murakami, Koons, and Hirst all made skate decks with Supreme.

Nu med bjørn på (lærredet)

What should any person know about art in your opinion?
– Nothing more than if they instinctively like it.

Og ørn.

Finally – you are born in Liverpool. What should one see if one ever stops by the city?
– We are very privileged to have the Tate Liverpool, and I would also say visit the Walker Art Gallery