Interview with Lotte

[General note: I like this interview, it could do with a little more descriptions of what, how and why of the work

NormalVille exhibition experience with Lotte de Jong

Lotte de Jong, the Media Artist

Henrietta Müller, the Famous curator

(2weeks led screen/panels based installation. )

The young Rotterdam based artist, Lotte de Jong, has her solo expo about the relationship between technology and sexuality. She creates an abstract storytelling trough melting/looped sculptures of screens, led panels.

Find your own identity within online communities; reflect your own sexual taboos trough deconstructed led screens.

Interview in a red and black couch, with some coffee and improvised lunch. Lotte is dressed sporty and casual as usual, she is in a little bit of hurry because she has to run to work within two hours. Recently she works at Sjatzi, a cosy, provocative cocktail bar here in Rotterdam. So, we try to run through our questions and finish our lunch too.

H: You describe your work, as a reflection of a new online community. Can you define the actual online communities you work with?

L: What is interesting for me about online community is based on sexuality and the porn industry, sex work, because we are not talking about it in our daily life and it's a big taboo. And as soon we have this online platform we create another identity, example through an avatar we are linked to an online community and we talk more openly about this subjects, stuff. This is a new form of supporting.

H: If I understood correctly, you want to challenge the taboos of online societies in this expo?

L: I don't necessarily want to challenge the taboo, I think it's interesting to show these online phenomena, so to show that, we all use different identities and personalities in these online platforms.

H: You are mentioning and obviously the exhibition is based on the interaction between technology and sexuality. Can you talk about this relationship?

L: Well, since the invention of pornography, which wasn't online obviously, like magazines, drawings, photos in the beginning, but since online pornography exists we consume it.

H: So, make it clear to me, the definition of sexuality in this case for you, it's only pornography?

L: No, not only. But it's interesting to see it, that online technology gives us so many possibilities for all our fetishisms, also create new fetishism, like you know sex with robots or like webcam sex.

H: If technology opens this platform, how you describe sexuality within your works as Lotte?

L: Mostly about sex, masturbation, things what turns you on, or things turns me on and how sexuality is formed by technology. Websites meet upsides, porn sites and so on.

H: You present identities trough abstract storytelling and moving screens, what do you think how this type of technology, online sexuality is changing our identity?

L: Depends on which platform you are talking about, an example, you can be just an avatar, where you can be anything. Or example if you are talking about webcam sex, where you are involved, put your self as an object, influences you a lot.

H: Did you ever had webcam sex yourself?

L: Yes.

H: How was it?

L: I think it's exciting, I mean there is a difference, you know webcam as for someone who is making money out of it, or just for fun with your boyfriend for example.

H: Were you in love with the person?

L: Yes. And it turned me on a lot, just to look at the person and you know that he or she is turned on because of you. Feels good. And in meantime the translation from the screen, because you can't touch it, being displayed is exciting, of course, you want to have real sex, but the fact that this is almost a taboo I guess it's also really exciting.

H: My last question is just about what are you inviting your audience to Turn On their own sexuality, to be brave enough to use technology for sexual expressions?

L: Yes, of course, it's important for me. I know there is a lot of bad things about online sexuality, especially woman are mostly objectified in this subject many times and doesn't represent female sexuality in a correct way, but we should not be scared to embrace it, you know open up for it and see it without too many judgments about it.