Radartical!
“If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him” John F. Kennedy
There are many different definitions of what an artist is or who he should be. Is he mainstream or unconventional? Is he well respected or criticized? To question an artist or art itself is a hard task because consequently our individual opinions result in a negative or positive attraction. Dictionaries will ultimately put a value on expression while recognizing multiple forms of art such as dance or music. Is it necessary to put a value on creativity? Is it not simply something that makes you content?
I had the pleasure of meeting with Casey RAnderson on February 12th at IVEN.TORY on 237 Lafayette St. He helped to strengthen my idea of success. He’s an artist who’s no stranger to the entertainment industry working on many projects in Los Angeles as an actor and as a filmmaker. I also met his business partner and sweetheart whom of which he told this reporter that they were “more then dating”. She is Marial Maher AKA Seasick Mama. The pair had met in 2009 after Casey moved to New York the previous year to more seriously focus on filmmaking. Together they worked on fashion campaigns and viral marketing campaigns. Seasick Mama provides an artist with the tools to convey their art work whether it be on t-shirts or other collaborative projects.
Casey’s most recent project is much more intimate then his past commercial and film short experiences; the photographing of the orgasm. This adventure, of course required a little simulation. “I brought out something within you…it was like me and my camera were having sex with people” As we talked more about the concept of the simulated foreplay, he gave me a slight push as an example of things he would do to get his friends into the idea. Seasick Mama interjected saying at times she felt like she hated the idea of her boyfriend getting so intimate and flustered but she fully understood his vision.
“I understand the game of the industry…” he tells me as we discuss his past life working with big shots. In Los Angeles he had worked with Kanye West, Tony Kaye [The director of the famed American History X] and even Snoop Dogg. He also worked on many more projects receiving recognition for his recognizable style and achievement. When Casey moved to New York in 2008 he was working on personal projects but also managing a successful night club called Plan B. He assured me he was currently much happier being a “Small time artist in New York”. Though Casey had accomplished so much his story lead to the void he had felt in terms of what made him feel completely happy with himself. So he made something without any intention of it being something huge because the scale in which it was made was completely personal and to be shared with those who supported him.
It was very obvious to me that he always enjoyed making art but how personal and fulfilling his endeavors were becoming were another story. I asked myself does money make you happy? Does who you have on your roster make you feel accomplished?For some “fame” can be an ultimate goal and it can create immense happiness. However, if what you’ve produced means nothing personally conclusively it all means nothing. His latest showing entitled “Fuck You x Fuck Me” was a project he worked on with friends as well as Seasick Mama who produced, a more humble project if you will. Seasick Mama produced T-shirts, a bed installation that sat in front of the window [of IVEN.TORY] and pillows adorned with O-faces. Transparent prints back lit inside four light boxes were hung on the wall each more interesting then the nextA video compiled by RAnderson of 1500 images capturing the whole photo shoot played behind the cashiers booth as the Dj spun records from the 90’s.
I’d like to take this time and remind the public of a well known artist named Keith Haring whom of which was just celebrated by Patricia Field this past week. Keith Haring was an unconventional post modern artist who started by leaving his statements on subway walls with chalk. Eventually he rose to super stardom and exhibited his work all over the world, later starting merchandising and advertising campaigns. Keith Haring even had the opportunity to influence popular culture on such a large scale that he painted a mural on the Berlin Wall three years before its collapse. His work was conveyable to plenty of messages but many of his ideas were sexually charged and opposed to ignorance. Even with all of his achievements many people found Keith to be a “sell out”. This of course is a matter of opinion but in my journalistic opinion Keith Haring is by no means the definition of a sell out. He stayed true to his themes of peace, the enjoyment of life and the acknowledgment of the AIDS epidemic until his untimely death in 1990. His work was no more about the glamour of the industry then Casey’s current work as an artist. If there is anything that they both have taught me the fame and “gratification” is secondary. My question is…what does it mean to be an artist? Does it mean that you paint or draw. Take pictures or produce music? Do you perform on the street? Do you influence people? Do you make yourself happy?After a philosophical conversation with both Casey and Seasick I could see that their goal wasn’t how lucrative their ideas could be. “ Some people would call us sell outs” said Seasick Mama, “Just because we made t-shirts.” Their goal was that of artistic purity. It wasn’t about how many people came. It wasn’t about how many things were bought. The meaning behind the presentation was the art itself. The meaning was to share something with their friends and to be apart of a movement of people who aren’t about the superficial things in life. Sometimes an idea is just an idea. A t-shirt is just a t-shirt. A pillow is just a pillow… and a rose is just a rose is just a rose.
Mike Townsend, of IVEN.TORY, was very willing to let his friend use the space as he liked. He made it more then clear that he enjoyed watching his friends do what they love. So I ask. What makes you happy?
