Interview
Ivan Klem
Ivan is a photographer based in Madrid. He received his Engineering degree at Universidad Politecnica Madrid, Masters degree at Manchester University, as well as his Masters Photoespaña in Photography: Theory and Art Projects. He was a finalist in awards like Kaulak Villa de Madrid, El Lobo y el Madroño, Descubrimientos PHE, Photo Book Week La Fábrica, ND Awards, IPOTY Fashion Awards, Fine Art Photo Awards, Palm Springs Photo Festival, Kuala Lumpur Photography Awards, Monochrome Awards, Kassel FotoBook Festival.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I am an industrial engineer, however I have always been attracted to art, photography and the way the world and matter work. It is an activity that has always accompanied me during my time as an engineer first and as a banking executive later. Photography gradually took up more space until it became my main activity.”
What inspires you?
“I find inspiration mainly in art, science, poetry, and collaborating with other artists. Art is a form of communication, and as such I want to communicate my vision, where conceptual weight, but also aesthetics play a fundamental role.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“As I said before, my work is fundamentally conceptual, wrapped in a certain aesthetic. In many areas of contemporary art, ugliness prevails. I couldn't disagree more. Art has always tried to understand the world, beautify it and then transmit it. I agree with this canonical vision of it. On the other hand, I think that knowledge is archetypal, which explains what poets, Zen masters and nuclear physicists have in common, something I have explored in my work "h", which is part of a trilogy around knowledge.”
How would you describe your work?
“My work is abstract, vital, colorful, the images are an excuse to allow me to talk about ideas, concepts, about the world, I would say that my work is my mental process when I study a subject, the images or objects produced are only documentary proof that the mental process of trying to understand facets of the world has occurred, something very similar to the photographs that remain after a performance or after a land art intervention.”
Which artists influence you most?
“A good number of artists like Carl Jung, Rothko, Pollock, Picasso, Araki, Ren Hang, Calder, Irving Penn, Frantisek Drtikol, Ezra Pound, YiFu Tuan, García Lorca, Newton (both of them), Yves Klein, Edward Weston, Christo and Richard Long. As you can see - a wide variety of disciplines inspire me.”
“Art is a form of communication, and as such I want to communicate my vision, where conceptual weight, but also aesthetics play a fundamental role.”
What is your creative process like?
“My creative process is fundamentally mental, an idea appears anywhere, usually while travelling or in conversation with other artists, from here, I explore the concept from numerous points of view, I do research, I make test images, and if the result is satisfactory I continue with higher quality images, it is an iterative process that culminates with the writing of an essay about the work done, only works with an essay about them are really finished. The essay means that I have fully understood what I have done and I feel capable of transmitting it.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“I don't think they have to have any special role, for me art is a personal process, I'm not interested in provoking or making people think about something, no art has ever changed the world nor will it do so, I'm content with making it a little more beautiful, understanding it and trying to transmit it.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“I have exhibited my work individually and collectively at Centro Conde Duque (Madrid), Centro José Hierro (San Sebastián de los Reyes), Galería Man Ray (Madrid), Centro Arte Tomas y Valiente (Fuenlabrada), Art & Events Center (Milan), Scope Art (Miami), New Goods (NY, Praga, Bucarest), PHE (Madrid), Centro de Arte (Alcobendas), Real Sociedad Fotográfica (Madrid), Palm Springs Art Museum, Fundación Canal, MOPLA Los Angeles, Centro Andaluz de Fotografía, Head On Sydney, Bienal Sur Buenos Aires, Month of Photography Colorado, Centro Cultural de España en Lima, Chile and México.”
