Q & A series :questions to an artist

Plugged Art Collective member Raina Benoit's "Q & A" series: questions to an artist with
Felecia Chizuko Carlisle

Carlisle's current work combines traditional analog musical instrumentation, digitally manipulated renderings of musical sound and found sound. Her interests in architectural space, virtual space, social/psychological space,and collaboration unfold an array of media and experimentation.
Image: Felecia Carlisle, "Copy, Paste, Return", at the Golden Pudel Club, 2007

Your work incorporates various media that ranges from sound, video, digital photography, to object fabrication. What is the underlining thread that weaves these creative tools together in your work?

(Felecia Carlisle) At times, I would say that I'm really dealing with forms of representation, questioning how images, information and stimuli are transformed by current media like the internet or the digital camera. Engaging the body, activating the senses, drawing from real life, are all important to my practice. How are digital forms affecting our language, our self image, our collective cultural interests, possibly even our belief systems?

Many of your projects focus on collaboration. What are the benefits and pitfalls of artists collaborating?

(Carlisle) Collaboration and cooperation come naturally to me. I like the social aspect of working with other people and I also like the end result, its unpredictability, and the challenge that it presents for the viewer and the artist. All collaborations are problematic, when questions of authorship and ownership are brought into the equation. It can be twice as difficult, especially with long distances and different time zones to consider logistically. I may be generalizing in this next statement, but I believe that all art is a collaboration. No one has a unique idea. I believe in a collective consciousness and that art is bigger than one person and their ego. A common pitfall for any studio practice is when someone brings in strict preconceptions, a vision of the end product that remains rigid, planned, pretentious. It is most important to get into the process and let it lead you where it wants to go. Artists are mediums for the work. An artist makes stuff, but the work has a life of its own. Collaboration only fails when people are motivated by power rather than a sincere passion for their research. That doesn't mean that the work is a failure. I think it's better to give up the power and take the term "mine" out of the vocabulary list. Unfortunately, that leaves me vulnerable to greed and opportunism. I am always working hard to let go and when I do, it's orgasmic.

Have you ever collaborated with the general public?

(Carlisle) I think performance is definitely a collaboration with the public. Creating an

audience is social sculpture. Making a space for people to inhabit is manipulating them. It brings them into the work, not only as a material form, but they have their own mind, they respond in uncontrollable ways. When working in the public sphere especially, the audience makes the work, it's for them. The artist, again, plays the role of the medium, not the sole creator. I don't believe in fascistic art. I think that public art, especially that which is funded by public money should include its audience as first priority, not just an afterthought.

What are some of your favorite sources of inspiration?

(Carlisle) My friends inspire me. I have really good and exceptionally creative and smart people in my life who teach me things every day.

I also love the internet. It's a great source for material. I don't have to tool around in junk yards to find stuff to work with.

I love a good work of art. I feel most present when I'm looking at something that changes me. You can't get that from a book or on the web.

Would you elaborate on how you begin, edit, and execute an idea? Is it a linear process for you? How do you know when its done?

(Carlisle) I usually see something that gives me a charge and I have to respond to it. It's compulsive. It's hardly ever done. I push around ideas and materials for a long time. I think it's done when I feel relaxed while I'm looking at it. If I feel anxiety, then it's not done.

You finished your MFA at the San Francisco Art Institute. Would you say there is one school of thought that defines the Art Institute? What are the advantages of attending a prestigious School of Art. What kind of work was being created amongst your peers? Do you maintain contact with your former colleges?

(Carlisle) I come from the New Genres department which was housed outside the main building in a leaky, dungeon. It used to be the studio of Diego Rivera and the building that housed painting and sculpture towered over us. One of my professors used to refer to the main building as "the ship" and our building was "the lifeboat". SFAI changed administrations the year I left and fell under a brand new regime that has since focussed itself on a global agenda, out with the old, and in with the new. This is a typical story and it will take time to know if it's a good thing or a bad thing. The positive for me to be there at the end of an era was that I discovered my lineage as an artist. I finally figured out where I came from. I couldn't relate to anyone else's traditions and I am grateful every day for finding myself there. New Genres may be sort of an off putting term, but it fit at the time it was coined. People who aren't painters, but may paint if necessary, or people who aren't photographers, yet take pictures, all fell into that place and it was very rich. It's not medium specific and I found it curious that so many painters, photographers, and sculptors wanted to come to my classes. It says something about the level of dialogue. We never talked about technique. We talked intentions, functions, ideas. It wasn't about the prestige. What was most beneficial for me was to be surrounded by professional artists that happened to love teaching. I have a handful of friends that I keep in touch with and we support each other. We love each other and we speak each other's language. We are bonded by that language and sometimes it makes us feel really special, other times it makes us feel alone.

Do you think female artists approach technology differently than their male peers? Please elaborate.

(Carlisle) Ok, this is an extremely loaded question and it requires me to buy into a strict dichotomy of the sexes of which I do not. That said, I'll give a cheeky answer.. Boys are tinkerers. They like to take things apart and put them back together. Girls are more personal, sensitive, emotional. More seriously, in terms of art history, I think that boy artists and girl artists do have particular sets of role models, BUT we are 40 years past the Marlboro Man genius type, and the "angry woman" type. We went through the 90's and the obsession with identity politics and activism. Women are taking the lead now, but I think there is a lot less focus on the personal. We are looking out at the world and identifying on a global scale. And if we wanted to go REALLY deep, I think technology has everything to do with it. Medical technology, for example, allows us to choose our biological sex. We can do anything we want with our bodies and that is more interesting. Also, if we look at Stelarc, the obsolete body, or the philosophy of post-humanism, the detached mind that floats around the internet.....we have a lot more to talk about than the difference between girls and boys.

You've taught Digital Arts classes for a number of years. What are some misconceptions that the general public and your intro students have had about the Digital Arts? How do you help guide them to a better understanding?

(Carlisle) In my experience, beginning digital students usually want to be shown "how-to". They want to make a pink elephant, put bunny ears on somebody's portrait, make a poster for their friends rock show or "pimp out" their myspace. They want to know all the tricks that you can do with Photoshop and they love pop-surrealism. It's irritating. I show them lots of art and I challenge their ideas. Sometimes I scare them and they hate me for it. I think when they are challenged to defend themselves then they figure out what's worth defending and what can be thrown out with the trash. I don't need them to like me, I need them to take a position. The concept of using the computer as an art tool is sort of hard to get used to for some people because it's still so new, and it's perceived as a tool for designers only, but it is so beneficial to all of us in our practice and in every day life.

Who are some of your favorite artists working today? Why? What do you look for in Art?

(Carlisle) Erwin Wurm--One Minute Sculptures--spontaneity and humor balanced with good form

DJ Spooky--Rhythm Science--tapping into art and philosophy through the side door

Pipilotti Rist--not being afraid of color or gooeyness

Marina Abromovic--not being afraid at all

Mel Chin--for being an environmentalist and an artist at the same time without ruining the art

Olafur Eliason--pure beauty and poetry

Sylvie Fluery--her command of space and love for shopping

It has to do something to me. It has to change me.

How would you describe "Bad Art" (meaning it stinks)?

(Carlisle) I'm tired of prankster art and theatricality for it's own sake. I'm tired of shock and awe. It's boring. I definitely don't like the sort of tech art or interactive art that justifies its existence through its own high level "techie--ness".. ooh ah look what I can do....hate it.


You have just recently moved to the Art mecca of Miami. What are your first impressions of the city and the art scene? Do you think this will influence your practice?

(Carlisle) It already has influenced me. In fact, I think I was able to resolve some problems that started way back in grad school on a body of work that I wanted to do then, but just couldn't understand. Now I do. (more to come). It's not just Miami, it's the whole area of South Florida that is so rich and interesting. It's so diverse and WARM. People kiss when they meet. That's pretty wonderful. There's a lot of work to be done here. I think Miami has a great future and I hope to be a part of it. I'm tired of moving.

Would you describe some of your projects that you have cookin?

(Carlisle) I'm working on setting up a studio now at Artscene, an affiliate of New World School for the Arts. I'm finally building my first geodesic dome with my friend and fellow artist, Christy Gast. Everybody has wanted one at one time or another, right? It will evolve into a moving installation space/architectural project, and study for a living village and/or a hurricane proof artist residency. (laughs) I'm building some websites and working on a series of digital prints called "the madonnas". Lots to do. Lots to do......check you later.

Excerpts of Felecia's performances can be viewed on her website.
To find out more about Felecia Carlisle and her past work visit www.FeleciaCarlisle.com