You’re presenting your new project ’Public Audio Image’ at hangmenProjects and what initially drew me to the project is the way it intersects visual art and music and sees the participation of ten contemporary musicians by musically interpreting your work. What were the ideas occurring to mind leading up to the project?

When I initially presented the ideas and pictures of what would make for the aesthetic and intention of this project, the process led to interpretations back and forth between me and the music producers. So rather a more correct description would be that I interpret their final compositions to be able to finish the work.

At the core there was this desire to work with more than just one of the senses, and an ambition would be to mediate an experience where the viewer and the work have at least some interaction. I chose to work with sound naturally because music is what I want to surround me with in my everyday life, whether I work, rest, work out or socialize, feeling blue or happy, strong or weak – there’s almost always music influencing my subsistence. Maybe that is the most obvious explanation of why a large part of my work as a visual artist is music-related.

The visual identity of the works you’ve created on mirror is interesting and I would call them mixed media paintings myself, alluding to your background as a graffiti artist, and then there’s the added layer of the sound scores. What was the process behind carrying your works out?

The past years I’ve worked with digital printed media, prints in general. I felt stuck by this media and the computerized process. I wanted to work with depth, tangible weight, new media and mixture of materials, shaping in a more dynamic way where I end up with the work and where the object I work on leads me through the process, allowing me to lose control in a way.

Ten musicians making sound scores unique to the exhibition…What directions or pointers, if any, did you give the artists when approaching your visuals? Interestingly you were telling me how the music sounds cohesive despite the musicians not having compared notes so to speak.

My theory of why the compositions got so close to each other is that the musicians all got the same direction and source influencing each of them, despite this quite diverse span in styles that exists between them. The direction was simply that I approached each one of them with an artwork of mine. I believe most of them got the message instantly – they are professionals in terms of interpreting feelings and directions through their own body of work. So I’m not surprised they did such a great job. Also, I should mention that I have personal relationship with many of the involved ones, either on a personal level or as a client-based relationship.

I find there’s a nostalgic element in here, bringing my own relationship to music consumption and the compact disc to mind. What do you think is the relevance of a project like ‘Public Audio Image’ in 2016?

Of course there’s a chance that the viewer automatically feels that there’s a nostalgic presence in this work. But I would say that it is quite an opposite strive away from my perspective. I am personally not a fan of nostalgia. This project is all about the future. In a way you can see this as a “goodbye” and “R.I.P” of the Compact Disc format, and also experience these artworks as artifacts of a past time – that had a large influence on our present time. The approach of keeping the project “outside” of the Internet and to dedicate it to the physical room – is also driven by wanting to connect people in healthier and more romantic ways than what is offered by mediation of the Internet.

Your ties with music and musicians date long back in time and yet the project is quite a stretch from past projects and works you’ve done so far, propelling you into new territory as an artist I’d say. Is that the way you see it yourself? Or rather feel like all of your work, be it as an art director, video director or artist, compromise a whole?

This is a new approach, not at all weighing on the same considerations as my client-based projects as an art director but ultimately comes from the same source – from me, so everything in a way is connected. Though I really did my best to isolate this project from my pragmatic side, and instead opening doors to my subconscious to approach the creative sense. In this case there’s no compromises.

What are you most looking forward to yourself in terms of the exhibition opening?

There are many things I’m looking forward to at the opening. I have been working on this project for a significant time now. Of course I hope that the work and the space (hangmenProjects) comes through together the way I envisioned it. I hope people like it in general and find it interesting in terms of experience and hopefully there’s a solvent feeling of being at a special event where people find a sense of “now”. Most importantly I of course hope my friends and family show up to experience it.

Credits:

Words by Ashik Zaman

Slobodan Zivic’s ‘Public Audio Image’ opens at hangmenProjects in Stockholm on Friday April 29 (open through the weekend) and is curated by C-print Journal.

Musicians participating in ‘Public Audio Image’;
AnnaMelina, Axel Boman, Bella Boo, Familjen, Harald Björk, Kate Boy, Maya Lourenco, Missa, Oskar Linnros and Yourhighness

I made it in the style of a mixtape you used to make for friends. This should be done far more often – it’s such a shame that making a mixtape is really out of date! Just imagine how much you’ll brighten up someone’s day! – Esther Silex

I read somewhere you moved around a lot growing up. Tell me a bit about that and how you got drawn to the club scene and the dj/production business.

That’s true, I’ve already moved houses 25 times during my life! My parents were highly creative and courageous people that loved children and traveling. Therefore I spent most of my childhood between France, Portugal, England and Germany or on the road with my 3 siblings in an old red VW bus. I am so grateful for their way of bringing us up. We never had a nanny or sorts, instead they would take us with them everywhere they went, which meant that we would come along, sleeping in the pram or on the sofas around when they went for a drink or to friend’s houses. It might sound outrageous to some, but children love being around people and being part of their parent’s life. Music and the club scene has therefore kind of always been part of our life. May it be Jimi Tenor, Sade, Sly & The Family Stone or Tchaikovsky, my parents eclectic record collection was always part of our lives at home.

At one point everything kind of broke up – to put it mildly – and my parents both moved away to different places. That’s when I really started digging all the old records they left me. I didn’t have a record player at home so I asked some friends who were running this Bar in Cologne if I could come and listen to the old gems I had found. They loved what I was playing which quickly got me my first gig! From there on I spent a lot of time looking for new music, going from Soul and Funk to Italo Disco and House and Techno. I started to play around with Ableton as well but quickly got very frustrated by just sitting in front of the computer screen. I learned that’s its easier to start making music with a limited vocabulary, the sorts that machines offer. Just 2 years ago I picked it up again, got myself a synthesizer and gave it another go. I felt more mature and ready to transmit my ideas of the sound I wanted to create into real music. My debut EP ‘c’ are the results of this!

Your DJ-mixes are really eclectic and with often unanticipated transitions. It feels like it’s a lot about playfulness and spontaneity. Could this be an accurate assumption and/or please elaborate a bit on how you work with them.

I love being surprised when I listen to other people playing, I love it when they take me on a ride, a ride I wouldn’t have even dreamt of. This what I am doing when I’m playing myself. Originally Techno was rebellion, it was a statement, a look into the future. It wasn’t supposed to please you or to be what you wanted to hear. I want to convey this feeling, this attitude, no matter what kind of genre who would could it. Help open up new strands of thoughts, new lights at the end of the tunnel by overthrowing any kind of musical-boundaries during my sets. This results in my gigs being very eclectic and playful!

You recently released your debut EP on Studio Barnhus. Tell me a bit about how you got picked up by the label.

The Studio Barnhus guys have been playing in Cologne for quite some years, so we’ve ran into each other a few times already. They’ve been on the list of my favorite labels for a quite a while now and as we liked each other instantly it made sense that they would be the first to be able to listen to my music. My friend Matt, who helped me with the release at his studio in Gothenburg and also has a tight bond to Studio Barnhus encouraged me to send it over, they loved it straight-away and we had a deal!

How would you describe the current club/music scene situation in Cologne, do you spot any trends or direction and which clubs and/or music venues can you recommend for visitors.

I would recommend Gewölbe and JackWho in Cologne. Fantastic bookings, location and sound and so many lovely people involved. For the good – there are loads of clubs in Cologne, and more coming, for the bad – there isn’t much interaction between the owners which is a shame as it would be far more profitable for everyone if at least musically wise they would work together. There aren’t enough people in Cologne for the wide offer of dance-nights, which means that big bookings often don’t get the attention they should. Too much going on in one night designed to address the same target group. If you want to hang out at a bar, I can warmly recommend Metronom, best drinks and jazz in town or King Georg which boasts by far the best booking of underground indie bands.

So what’s you future plans ahead?

Im going to be in the studio a lot during the next months. I used to be involved with tons of other projects and have now finally freed myself of all to just be able to concentrate on playing and making music. It’s a big step, and I’m so happy with the decision! Besides that I’m moving to Hamburg at the end of the month to go and live with the love of my life!

Upcoming gigs:

11.03 Wuppertal, Klub

12.03 Cologne, Heinz Gaul

24.03 Kopenhagen, Culture Box

08.04 Berlin, Katerblau

Credits:

Words by Gustav Bagge