Stuart Semple — The Maker

Just when you think you've deciphered the codes that turn a Pop culture trinket into an art object, here comes Stuart Semple. The artist creates works that scream of Pop Art traditions and are loaded with its symbols: squiggles of graffiti tags, official acronyms, lyrics from pop songs etc. What makes them so appealing to build a successful artistic career with dozens of international solo exhibitions, group shows and major public art projects? The very best art comes from life, and Stuart Semple sure knows how to reflect our ‘today’ filled with irresistible consumerim and much needed creative therapy.

1.Art and life. Life and art. Where one ends and the other starts?

Interesting question, so if you believe there is a force that created life then you can perhaps start to see life itself as the ultimate artwork or expression of that force. Even if you don't believe in a creative principle behind the evolution of life you can appreciate life as if it were an artwork in it's beauty, in it's pain. The very best art reflects life but of course it comes from life itself.

2.Music can contaminate people's mood more than Art?

Music has a power to shift mood in a way that art doesn't. It's not necessarily more effective it just works in a different way. As food effects how we feel, smell, colour. All our senses can shift us emotionally. That of the ears versus that of the eyes is interesting. If we see a profoundly violent or upsetting image it shifts our mood, inversely a beautiful piece of music can move us in different ways.

3.Cycles are one program inside "The Programe". Visual arts are being slowly replaced by digital art? Or each program/cycle exist in its own realm ?

I don't see it like that, i think it's a case of parallel things running at the same time. Digital expression is an extension or part of visual art. Artists will always use the tools around them, that could be code and pixels or it could be paint. I think what it is about is the intention behind using those things. There is however a lasting quality in physical tactile mediums. We know a lot about ancient cultures because they literally carved their stories in giant pieces of rock and stone that have lasted millennia. I'm not sure that hard drives, servers and codes will stand the test of time. There will always be a place for well made physical things.

4.Why are we not developing art as a mean to heal the soul's wounds? Would you envision such a therapy in the future?

First of all I don't think the soul is wounded, the soul is unmoving, it's intact. It will remain after we die, its a still observer it's consciousness. What does need healing is our connection to that soul and sadly in some places a realization that there is such a thing at all. So the question is how art can reconnect us with our true essence or an eternal universal loving awareness that isn't disrupted by the movement of our physical lives. Artists have tried, and in some cases they've done well to remind us of our soul. Everything emanates from that soul level and art is no different. You can follow anything in the physical world back to a connection with soul. You can find reality through a grain of sand or you can find it through an artwork, you can find it in your breath. I'm not sure how useful art is in reconnecting us, I think there are better documented ways. Meditation, yoga, contemplation or self enquiry will probably get you to a soul level consciousness faster. I think the act of making art though can be extremely powerful in healing us emotionally and through making things we might start to understand ourselves, each other and our world better. Ultimately that could provide a good environment to find that soul.

当你认为你已经破译了将一个波普文化的饰品使之成为艺术对象的代码，他就是Stuart Semple。他创作了让人尖叫的波普艺术传统并载入了其符号的作品：涂鸦标签，官方缩略语，流行歌曲的歌词等。是什么让他们如此吸引人使之与几十家国际个人展览，团体节目和大型公共艺术项目建立出成功的艺术生涯？最好的艺术来源于生活，而Stuart Semple正正明确地知道如何去体现我们充满了不可抗拒的消费主义和急需的创新疗法的“今天”。

1.艺术和生活。生活和艺术。哪个是开端，哪个是结尾？

这个问题很有趣，因为如果你相信有一股力量创造了生命，那么你或许可以开始看到生命本身是这种力量的终极艺术作品或表现。即使你不相信生命进化背后的创造原理，你可以领悟人生就好像是一件艺术品，既美丽又痛苦。最好的艺术反映生活，但当然，它来源于生活本身。

2.音乐会比艺术更加能够感染人的情绪吗？

音乐有一种改变情绪的力量是艺术没有的。这并不见得更起作用，它只是以不同的方式运作。就好像食物影响我们的感觉、嗅觉、视觉。我们所有的感官可以在情绪上改变我们自己。听觉对比视觉是很有趣的。如果我们看到深刻强烈的或令人苦恼的映像它改变了我们的情绪，相反地一段美丽的乐章可以以不同的方式感动我们。

3.周期是“The Programe”里的一个计划。视觉艺术是否正在慢慢被数字艺术取代？或者在它领域中的每一个程序/周期中存在？

我不这么认为，我认为这是在同一时间并行运行的东西。数字表达是视觉艺术的一个扩展或它的一部分。艺术家始终在使用身边的各种工具，这可能是代码和像素或者是绘画。我认为它是什么代表着使用这些东西背后的意图。不管怎样，在物理触觉介质中会有一个持久的质量。我们之所以能够知道很多关于古代文化的内容，是因为在那些已经存在了几千年的巨大石块和石头上精确地雕刻了他们的故事。我不知道硬盘驱动器、服务器和代码是否会经得起时间的考验。但总会有适合存放制作精良的物体的地方。

4.为什么我们不将艺术作为治愈心灵创伤的良药去发展？你会想象在未来有这样的治疗吗？

首先，我不认为灵魂是受伤的，灵魂是静止的，它是完整的。在我们死后，它仍然是意识的观察者。需要治愈的是我们与灵魂的连接，而可悲的是，有些时候我们领悟到确实是有这样的事情存在。所以，问题是艺术将如何把我们和我们的真实本质或永恒的普遍的爱的意识重新连接在一起，而不被肉体生命的流逝打乱。艺术家们尝试过用艺术作品提醒我们，并在某些情况下他们也做得很好。从灵魂层面和艺术中散发出来的一切并没有什么不同。现实世界中的任何东西你都能将他们与灵魂连接。你可以通过一粒沙找到现实，你也可以从一件艺术作品，从你的呼吸中找到。我不知道如何用艺术的重新连接我们，我觉得有更好地记录方式。冥想，瑜伽，沉思或自我探究可能会使你更快到达灵魂层面的意识。我认为，艺术创作的行为，虽然可以在情感上治愈我们，通过创造，我们也许能开始更好的了解自己，了解对方和我们的世界。直至可以提供良好的环境，以发现灵魂。