Text on practice Clara

What have you been making? How did you do it? Relation to previous practice

In general my current practice has been a bit scattered. Experiencing a strong urge to constantly, combined with several jobs I am doing next to the study, I have been learning and expanding new techniques. I have been switching between lens based work, costume design and crafts such as pottery and knitting.

Recently I have finished a 3 ½ minute short film on my friend Amber. This film was a great exercise when it comes to pinpointing the aesthetics of my film work, as well as several topics that I would like to continue working with in the future. The film touches on topics such as herbal medicine, physical intimacy in friendships and female connection in general. Addressing eating disorders and the connection I have found in this friendship, when sharing both of our experiences, which partially stem from a strong sense of comparison between women gives a feminist approach. Also the idea of working with natural materials, reconnecting to ancient knowledge and healing through nature are ideas I cherish and connect with in other ways of creating.

For example in learning how to knit, do pottery and create bioplastics.

I have also created a photobook on my time in Berlin, which combines my friend Maxis poetry with my own photography. An analysis of what the place is becoming and who we feel like we are becoming through it. The photography is analog and generally soft; black and white, winter city shots and portraits of those I met and surrounded myself with.

Generally speaking I have been struggling with the idea of superficiality in creating portraits, which used to be my main focus and now trying to create portraits with stronger meaning in a larger context. Recently I have become more analytical with my own work through collective reflection classes and seminars we have been taking, in order to find my internal drives and more actively work with such. Learning new communication means and realizing the importance of interaction in my life and the influence in my work I have been getting and asking for more feedback and practice to actually applying it, which I struggled with in the past. I am starting to express my ideas more eloquently and reflect on the aspects and connections that excite me.

When I first picked up a camera it came from an approach to be seen. So depict myself and my close friend at that time Mara. Together we started a Blog and later I started posting videos of myself and my life on Youtube. I still feel a strong urge to be seen and am analyzing the root of this glorification of fame and visibility online and offline.

Do I want to be my own subject or do I create a space for others to share their lives?

Over the past years I have created a short film on my grandmother's journeys to the “OstBlock”, meaning eastern Europe when it was still divided. I have also created a photobook in which I photographed 50+ inhabitants of the 250 people community I lived in in Groningen. Both of these projects focussed more on using photography as a tool to start intimate conversations and situations that I visualized.

Lastly, my graduation project was the creation of a sustainable clothing collection, made from second hand and self made materials. I choose to also create a magazine on the topic of the fashion industry, reflecting on editorial fashion photography and the meaning behind the pieces we own, the stories a piece of clothing can tell. next to the magazine and clothing pieces I created a fashion film and a one shot process video as well as photography prints.

What do you want to do next? Why do you want to make it?

The transformation from natural materials either using old techniques, or combining the process with new research has felt empowering and is something I want to bring more into my lens based work.

Either documenting craft women and men or myself during the process. This type of work I experience as deeply calming and exciting.

The mesmerizing effect the transformation of raw material to a product has on many i find intriguing. Having performatively spun wool at an exhibition or seeing videos of the process of clay work online and in established museums has shown me that. This may be due to our disconnect to the objects we use and purchase every day, that I see the childish magic effect one can experience when seeing the creation of a clothing piece or a simple vase.

Also the importance of surrounding ourselves and creating a home with artefacts that calm us and inspire us has been a striving idea. Organic shapes of hand shaped ceramics, soft textured photography prints or more bring in the needed nature approach that has been lacking in our urban spaces in my opinion.

I have also been printing photographs and would like to try printing on fabrics or project on fabrics, to bring a more textile approach to photography and film as well.

Next to creating objects that have the purpose of being in someones home, I also aim towards a rather installation focussed approach, in which I wish to bring together the different mediums that I have been exploring.

An installation for example on Kelp. In this way I could work with researching the materiality of the species, create sculptures, dye wool with it, create a rather documentary style video on it, create calming prints that embrace the organic shapes and colors, and showcase video loops of working with the material.

Also the expression of physical intimacy I want to embrace more in my work. That a kiss can be shared with family, friends and a romantic partner is often seen as challenging. In my experience I embrace my close friends with physical tenderness, which creates deeper relationships and a stronger feeling of being held by those around you. This could be shown in photographs of different embraces or video works that show close shots of hugs or other close physical contact. The shots I would imagine are long, so the viewer has time to analyze their own feelings when observing. This project might be a struggle, as films and photography in general might have numbed us partially when it comes to seeing intimacy. It should not appear too staged, so it can be related to and give an authentic feeling of intimacy.

Possibly these works could be projected or printed on materials that give a stronger soft feeling and celebrate the visceral experience of contact.

Relation to larger context

Alain de Botton Siddhartha

relationships and their challenges/intimacy/philosophy