Antony Crook X Mogwai

For Dazed Digital

The photography of Antony Crook features sublime landscapes; mountains bathed in mist and sea and clouds unified in breath-taking Norwegian scenery. Combined with Mogwai’s epic musical progressions and crescendos through intensity to climax, this aesthetic creates the perfect synesthetic experience. For their new collaborative project, Crook accompanies Mogwai on their Japan tour and documents the journey through a series of photographs.

The images will be displayed this month at the KK Outlet in Hoxton Square, along with Crook's film 'Knock for Knock', also created in Japan. Here Dazed talks to the photographer/ director and exclusively premieres a selection of images from his photo diary.

Dazed Digital: Why did you choose to photograph the band in Japan of all places?                 

Antony Crook: Stuart Braithwaite talked to me about how different their Japan shows are, and how respectful their audiences are. At the moment where their tracks go quiet the audience are silent, and you can hear a pin drop. This always interested me and I wanted to see it and try and photograph it.

DD: Do you feel like your style of photography has a special affinity with Mogwai's music?

Antony Crook: I think it does, I seem to photograph things in a similar way to how they approach music. There is a feeling or point of view that repeats. I think we see things in similar ways.

DD: Why do you think you find the figure of the cyclist so interesting?

Antony Crook: I'm more drawn to the landscape and the idea of traveling through it, partiality a lone figure.

The cycling came from the first film (30 Centuryman) that I did with them and my friend James Bowthorpe, who'd just broken the world record for cycling around the world. Knock for Knock was a development or sequal to this project.

DD: Can you tell us a little about the film that you’re directing in October and where the inspiration for this came from?

Antony Crook: It's called The Hudson River Project. James Bowthorpe is going to travel to New York to collect wood and metal that he finds in the streets and bins of Manhattan, then make a rowing boat and two oars out of it. Take it to the start of the Hudson River high in the Adirondack Mountains, and then row it the 315 miles back to New York. We're hopefully making it into a feature and Mogwai are doing the soundtrack.

'Mogwai Japan: Knock for Knock' will run from 6th - 28th April at the KK Outlet, 42 Hoxton Square

Choir of Young Believers

For Dazed Digital

The lyrics of the track 'Sedated' mention ‘isolation and dreams’ and those are exactly the sounds being emanated from Choir of Young Believers’ new album, 'Rhine Gold'. The first track especially, exudes ethereal solitude, where the vocals float alone into the melancholic soundscape, and it's only after three minutes that a beat kicks in, bringing it back down to earth.

Choir of Young Believers was conceived in the mind of Jannis Noya Makrigiannis but now there are up to eight musicians and friends who join him live on stage to create the theatrical pop music that the Danish group are soon to be so well known for. Echoing the likes of Bon Iver and Fleet Foxes, their new album which can be streamed here will be officially released on April 9. 

The Happy Show

For Dazed Digital

The work of Stefan Sagmeister has always tetered precariously on the fine line separating art and design, and the pieces in his latest exhibition are no different. His ten year exploration into the concept of happiness marks its completion with 'The Happy Show', an exhibition held at The ICA in Philadelphia.

'The Happy Show' concentrates on Sagmeister’s own happiness and his attempts to manipulate it using different methods. The exhibition presents his findings through a mash-up of mediums; combining the social data of psychologists and anthropologists with film, print, sculpture, installation and infographics.

Dazed Digital: You have spent ten years exploring the concept of happiness, what inspired you to start the project?

Stefan Sagmeister: I had given a presentation on design and happiness for quite a long while at design conferences. I had found thinking about the topic helpful for my own practice as it forced me to consider the fundamentals and the feedback from the audience was always enthusiastic. Ultimately, most things I do in life have an increased well-being in mind, but I often take all sorts of detours to get there. I was interested to see if it was possible to take a direct route.

DD: You use a variety of mediums within this show, is this done for any particular reason?

Stefan Sagmeister: We chose many mediums simply because we have never worked in them before, so we are not adapted to them, and are not bored by the process. Makes us happy.

DD: You invite us to enter your mind as you attempt to alter its level of happiness through cognitive therapy and pharmaceutical drugs. Do you believe that happiness can increase artificially or that it is a natural state that must evolve independently?

Stefan Sagmeister: I do believe that I can train my mind in the very same way I can train my body. By and large, the longer and harder I train, the better the results. Having said this, I do think it is impossible to reach permanent happiness. UK psychologist Daniel Nettle thinks of happiness as a carrot on a stick, designed by evolution to show the right way, and also designed so that we will never permanently reach it. We likely would just sit around and eat sweet and fatty foods all day and that is simply not in the interest of evolution. 

DD: In terms of your research, was your aim to ascertain a concrete definition of happiness?

Stefan Sagmeister: I am often bored with definitions, in this case though it is such an all encompassing term, that I do think it is helpful to distinguish three different levels of happiness according to time. There is short term happiness like bliss, joy and ecstasy, medium term happiness like satisfaction and well-being and long term happiness like "finding what you are put on this earth for". 

The Happy Show will be open from April 4th – August 12 2012 at The Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia

Happiness and Other Survival Techniques

For Dazed Digital

Retailers Benetton isn't known solely for their work within the fashion industry. Instead they have spent the last few years generating a reputation for themselves as a label that is dedicated to social progress and change. Their conscientious ethos manifests itself in the magazineCOLORS, a publication about social issues faced by people across the globe, and from 3rd – 13th April The United Colors of Benetton curate a COLORS-inspired exhibition which goes on display at London's Design Museum.

Dazed spoke to Patrick Waterhouse, Creative Director of COLORS Magazine and Luca Biondolillo, Corporate Communications Director of The Benetton Group, about the exhibition, the concept behind it, and how Benetton’s social conscience ties in with its stores.

Dazed Digital: What kind of pieces can we expect to see in the expo?Patrick Waterhouse: United Colors of Benetton is exhibiting content from three issues of COLORS – the Survival Guide series – so there'll be photographs, typologies, and illustrated instructions telling you survival techniques for modern life, such as how to build a boat out of plastic bottles, how to sit on a toilet, and how to fall in love. We'll be exhibiting artefacts that appear in those magazines, too, such as a rickshaw-pulling robot from China.

DD: The upcoming exhibition has been inspired by the Colors magazine trilogy; happiness, shit and transport. What is the relevance of these three things and why have they been singled out?Patrick Waterhouse: Everybody shits, uses transport and spends a lot of the rest of the time trying to be happy. 90% of our transport runs on oil, and researchers are all warning that the era of cheap oil will end in the next couple of years, if it hasn't ended already. We rely on our transport networks, and we're totally unprepared for what will happen when they stop working well.

Likewise, people don't think about shit, even though shit is a huge issue. More children die every year from diarrhoea than from AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined. Shit can also solve many of our fuel problems, and many of our agricultural problems, but people don't even want to use the word "shit".

As for happiness, the World Health Organization is warning that depression is going to be the biggest health burden in the world by 2030. It's an epidemic, and the industries grown up around curing it are worth billions. It's fascinating. So the linking theme for Transport, Shit and Happiness is that they're relevant, right now, to everybody.

DD: How does the exhibition link to what’s going on in the Benetton stores?Luca Biondolillo: The exhibition at the Design Museum is immensely exciting: events showing the creative work from Colors have been connected directly to Benetton stores – not just in the City where the event is taking place, but in cities across Benetton’s international network. This is  possible also thanks to “Live Windows” – giant digital windows now installed in some of the flagship stores – which can simultaneously show content from a single exhibition.

DD: Why is it so important that a visitor to a Benetton store is no longer just a customer but also a participator?Luca Biondolillo: Benetton believes that a retailer’s physical location is the place where the consumer’s perception of the brand takes place – and this heightened digital experience is essential in engaging shoppers and inviting them to interact with the brand. 

Happiness and Other Survival Techniques runs from April 3rd - 13th at The Design Museum, London

Nicholas Hits Simmer

For Dazed Digital

Nicholas Iammatteo is one of the talented new producers that keep house music interesting. He adapts the genre to the sound-waves of today, creating a unique and energizing strand, clearly recognizable by his enthusiastic following. His devotion to the old sound and its roots is evident not only in his music but also in his self-created, vinyl only label, No More Hits, where the importance of content is placed far above the presence of technology.

His own deep house vibe oozes funk and disco whilst soul and Diva samples characteristically litter the arrangements. At just 25 he has already churned out a vast catalogue of work on a variety of labels, and tonight he'll be celebrated as one of ‘the game’s freshest talents’ bySimmer as he plays live alongside John Heckles on The Kingsland Road. Dazed had a chat with him about his music, his influences and his recommendations. 

Dazed Digital: What can we expect from your live performance at Simmer? Do you DJ as well? 

Nicholas: No I don’t Deejay, although I’m a passionate record collector, probably I have much more records than a lot of people who say they  deejay. My live set at Simmer is going to be exciting as I’m going to be testing for the first time a lot of new material that I’ve been working on most recently, some stuff that has never been released or heard yet.  So I guess there will be plenty of secret bombs! Anyways sometimes after the live set I play a few old records from my collection and one that never fails to work is “Lil Mo Ying Yang – Reach” on Strictly Rhythm, that one can tear down the club!

DD: They have recently had the likes of Chez Damier, Jerome Sydenham and Kenny Larkin to play. How much, if at all, were these icons and sounds an influence on your own classic house sound? How can you explain this resurgence and who do you think is making the most fresh sounding music?

Nicholas: It’s really a coincidence they had Chez & Sydenham to play. I could consider them and their labels the greatest influence on my music, although in diverse moments of my living. When I first got into proper underground dance music it was about late 90s and I remember the biggest thing for me was Ibadan records. I was very much into the so called NYC spiritual house music scene, so several of my personal classics are Ibadan12”s  like Vera Mara – Orixas,  Sydenham & Ferrer – Koko, Joe Clausell – Je ka Jo and the list could go on evermore. I was also very pleased when they moved to a new direction releasing “Sandcastles”, a record that set a standard in dance music and that I was always looking up to throughout my first production attempts which were very more orientated on that kind of murky African house-techno vibe. On the other hand Chez Damier and his Prescription label together with Ron Trent is still sharing a big influence on the music I make nowadays, take my last record “Looking” on X–masters, I was very influenced by Chez & Trent tunes when making that, especially “Ron & Chez D - KMS 054”.  I see that right now I’m not the only producer out there inspired by that kind of classic house aesthetics, although I try to keep it fresh and sounding as a new record and not just a replica of a vintage house classic. I don’t like to name people but for me one producer that is making the finest stuff out there is Gerd, he’s been around for ages but I think right now he is in great shape and I’m happy to team up with him  and his labels. Also Quell is making some hot music, that’s why I suggested him for a remix on my next single.

 

DD: If in doubt, play? 

Nicholas: Mike Oldfield – Sentinel  (Satoshi Tomiie  Interpretation).

 

DD: Current top 5 records?

Nicholas: Kai Alce feat Azulu Phantom – Willow EP - Deep Explorer

Jason Grove – 313.4 Ever – Skylax

The Mekanism – Can’t Believe – Needwant

Toby Tobias – One Night On Mare Street – Quintessentials

Two Armadillos – Golden Age Thinking pt. 2 – Two Armadillos

 

DD: What are you excited about next?

Nicholas: There is a lot of stuff going on, I have some rather interesting bookings I’m looking forward to, especially excited about going to Barcelona during Sonar were I’ll be playing at a very special rooftop party. I also have some new and fresh singles  that will soon drop on 4lux with some nice remixes by the likes of Quell, Mark E and others. Also a special edition Nu groove remixes 12” is coming out on Needwant for record store day with some unreleased “NU Groove” remixes of mine. I’m also working to do something with a vocalist, hopefully that will happen too.

Nicholas plays Simmer tonight, Friday 30 March, at Basing House, 25 Kingsland Road, London, E28AA

The Wild & The Innocent

For Dazed Digital

Jordan Sullivan is a very proactive photographer. Last week he was in Tokyo showing his own work and this week he’s in New York showcasing other peoples. Ethereal and delicate, his photographs concentrate on the tension between human kind and nature. He likens the slopes of the female nude to the rolling hills of landscape while at the same time revealing the dual power and fragility of each. These are qualities he retains as he curates Clic Gallery's latest exhibition, 'The Wild & The Innocent'

Dazed Digital: Most images in 'The Wild & The Innocent' seem to have a delicate quality about them. Do you believe that fragility is inherent in both body and earth?

Jordan Sullivan: Yes. It's almost debilitating when I think how fragile people and nature are. My sister is a surgery nurse and one of the bravest people I know, and I love hearing her operating room stories - as terrifying as they can be. A wound a half a centimetre to the right or left makes the difference between living or dying. Everything can change so fast. All things are delicate and sensitive but it's so hard to remain aware of that and to uphold it.

DD: The tensions between humankind and nature seem prolific in your own work, why do you think that this is a theme that particularly interests you?

Jordan Sullivan: I'm constantly feeling connected and disconnected from the natural world, and I think that tension naturally comes into my work. Also, when I look at skin or a naked body I always think of emptiness or a desert. I love being in the middle of nowhere. I grew up in a small town in the mid-west, so I was surrounded by a lot of nature and I'm always interested in how being in nature can change someone. 

DD: Do you believe that man and nature can successfully co-exist or do you think that natural disasters and the way resources such as oil have been drained signal that we are destined to be opposed forces for, at least, the foreseeable future?

Jordan Sullivan: I think we will definitely be in opposition for a very long time and probably till our species is over. The way mankind treats the environment is definitely out of control. There would have to be a complete spiritual or moral change in the world before our relationship with nature would begin to improve.

DD: In what way do you wish to alter the exhibition-goers self-perception?

Jordan Sullivan: My first goal in this exhibition was to create a spiritual reaction in response to beautiful images. Photography for me is always about seeing. I hope people will look at these landscapes and portraits and get a sense of their own connectedness to the natural world. 

DD: The exhibition, in parts, explores the naked human form. Do you think that acceptance of the nude body, and its liberation from taboo, would bring us closer to nature? 

Jordan Sullivan: Cultures where nudity is not taboo generally seem closer to nature and more peaceful, but that is of course a huge generalisation. I think liberating the taboo of nude imagery would lead to a closeness and comfort with ourselves. I think one needs to examine and accept what he or she is made of on some sort of spiritual and scientific level in order to really feel closer to the natural world. I'm still figuring that one out myself.

The Wild and The Innocent opens today and runs until April 17th 2012 at Clic Gallery, New York.

Occupation and Protest.

For Dazed Digital

At a protest it’s easy to feel as if the event is just a passing moment in time, especially when the governments ignore your demands, and memories are quickly lost in the depths of the news archives. However, Guy Atkins, a Goldsmiths graduate from the MA in Arts & Politics, has found a way to tackle the transience of protest with his 'Save our Placards' projects. Almost exactly a year ago, March 26th 2011, the 'March for the Alternative' took place in London and saw the largest demonstration in the country since the Iraq War. Atkins and his team were there to collect donated placards, banners and costumes, as covered by Dazed Digital at the time. In their hands the momentary significance of these pieces was extended and they were transformed into important remnants of a major demonstration: they then became symbols of the individual’s voice, allowed to flourish at the hands of British wit and creativity.

The project has managed to get a selection of the most unique placards off the streets and into the permanent collection at The Museum of London. Here, they will also be holding a discussion on the topic ofOccupation and Protest and the documentation of Social Unrest on Monday evening. The panel speaking on the issue will include Turner Prize winner, Jeremy Deller; Kurt Barling of BBC London; Morning Star Journalist Rory Mackinnon and Dr Cathy Ross, The Museum of London’s Director of Collection’s. Held on the anniversary of the anti-cuts protest, the event will document the duty of the museum to document social unrest whilst also drawing attention to the fact that more demonstrations are to be expected as issues present this time last year have not yet been resolved.

“The Museum has a long history of collecting protest material, from the Suffragettes in the early 20th century to the anti-road ‘No M11’ protests in the 1990s. It’s a collecting area that raises interesting theoretical and practical issues for us as a city museum, and is particularly topical at the moment, given the debate around Occupy”, says Cathy Ross, Museum of London Director of Collection.

'Occupation and Protest: Documenting Social Unrest' takes place on the 26 March from 19.00 - 20.45 and costs £6