Name: Trez
Age : 27
Place of birth: East of France
Links:
www.orbscurarium.com
www.myspace.com/orbscurarium
http://orbscurarium.deviantart.com
www.octopulse.net
www.design-catacombs.com
www.facebook.com/trez.orbscurarium
Black Cat : So let them know all you think it’s important to know about you: your daily life, your family situation, your passions, your studies, your artistic influences, the medium and techniques you use to create artworks and the projects you have partecipated.
Trez : Hello, I would like to thank you first for this interview and the interrest you have for my work, I'm really honored.
I'm Trëz, a graphic designer from France.
I've studied Art and CGI in a French Superior School of Art during 3 years. Now I'm working in Paris.
My creative world is inspired by the Human decadence on this ruined Earth.
I try to depict the deviance and weakness of humanity through visual creations. The torment of the characters is translated by the deformity of bodies which are placed in cold and opressive places. I consider this own vision of the world like a new reality, an alternated universe built by my eyes and my personnal conception. This new world is called The Orbscurarium.
I've started to expose my creations last year during different exhibitions in France: Souterrain Porte V (with HR Giger, Seth Siro Anton, Bruce Mitchell...), the Art comm1 gallery (with Nico [Fracture Lab]), Festival des Arts Bourrins, The Ravenna Night...
I have many artistic influences, like the works of HR Giger, Olivier de Sagazan, Kris Kuksi, Seth Siro Anton, the Brother's Quay, Adam Jones, Chris Cunningham and many other... The music is a great source of inspiration too, with bands like Septicflesh, In Slaughter Natives, Chaostar, Tool, Arcturus and other dark kind of sounds.
I'm working with different persons on various projects too.
I'm a member of "Octopulse", a collective of artists who create short movies and experimental video art.
I've created the association "Design from Catacombs" with another graphic designer (Nico [Fracture//Lab]), we are working on different collaborations: Tshirts and posters based on our works, Artworks for music bands, promotion of the dark Art we like...
B.C. : When and under what circumstances did you first refer to yourself as an "Artist"?
T. : I have considered myself as an Artist when people who saw my work during exhibitions used this word to speak about me. But I don't use this term in a conceited way.
"Artist" and "Art" are complex and subjective words, I don't really know their definition, that has no importance for me. I think that they allow us simply to classify things. Personally, I consider me as being a creative, the creation is my mean of expression, it's my way of presenting my own vision of the world. People can qualify me as graphic designer if they prefer.
B.C. : How do you think technology, especially the computer, has changed art? In what ways do you find the advancement of technology to be a positive and a negative influence on art?
T. : According to me, the technology opened other perspectives of expressions. The computer is a new tool allowing to vary, to widen fields of the creativity. We can approach things in a different way, it's really important in my work, because I like experimenting, to test new methods. It's for that reason that I don't lock myself only into the use of the computer. It's true that the photo-manipulation and 3D softwares are tools that I employ regularly, but I draw a lot and also I paint. The sculpture attracts me enormously, maybe later.
The main problem is that numerous persons forget that these technologies are only tools and nothing more. The main interest of a work is in what it tells, what it passes as feelings. A creation which bases itself only on the technical aspect has no soul. It's the same thing for painting or any other process of creation.
B.C. : How long does it take for an idea to appear on paper?
T . : As soon as an idea comes to me, I have to make at once a very fast sketch and note some informations, to forget nothing of my idea. I have a lot of archived sketches. I always take a pad of sketch with me to be able to note my ideas at any time.
B. C. : How much of your work is about theory, and how much of your work is about practice?
T : The work presented on my site The Orbscurarium is a small part of my creations. I have a great deal of ideas which exist only as sketches. My personal work, The Orbsucrarium, is made during my free time, but doesn't allow me to live. I exhibit my creations for one year only, I am little known at the moment. The business which makes me live is 3D graphic designer for Parisian studios. I work on advertisements, movies and series as 3D modeler and texturer. The problem is that I have not enough time to realize all my personal projects. Therefore, my ideas aren't all concretized. I hope to have the chance, one day, to be able to dedicate myself completely to The Orbscurarium, without having to ask questions of money.
B.C. : W hat are your work habits? Please be specific...
T : I have two way of working, a very precise and structured and the other one much more free and spontaneous.In the first case, my ideas come to me when I let my spirit escape, when I listen some music or during my sleep.
I quickly make a sketch in some seconds, by adding notes, to describe the atmosphere bound to my vision. Then, it's this vision which determines the technique that I am going to use for the final creation: photo-manipulation, drawing, video... It's a question of felt.
When I wish to make an illustration for example, I spend a long time to look for the good centring, structure and atmosphere, I make a lot of preparatory drawings. The work of the final image can last several days or weeks to arrive at the wished result. It's a long process, with a precise objective which perfectly has to represent my vision.
In other case, I lik e working in a more random way, I make of the automatic drawing, without knowing in advance what I am going to create. I call these creations "Raw Impulses". The result can succeed in 5 min or in several days, the used tools can vary also, everything depends on my envy or on my mood. That allows me to free my spirit and to let make my unconscious and my feelings.
These working habits are very different, but they are convenient for me both.
B.C. : In your work, do you prefer timeless themes with extended shelf life or issues of the day with maximum impact? How does this preference affect the longevity of your work, the turns of your career, and the relationship with your audience?
T. : My work is based on the realization of the dark face of the human mind: Madness, Solitude, Hatred, relation between the Human race and Life, Death, the World... are some themes that I study with The Orbscurarium. So we can speak about timeless themes. Nevertheless, some current events can influence me, but my works keep generally a global reach. I am an observer of the decline of the human race which programs his own destruction, I think that my work will be more and more connected to reality in the future.
However, The Orbscurarium is completely separated from the opinion of the others. As I said it previously, I hope I will live one day by the sale of my works, but provided that people appreciate my work for what it is. I refuse that my choices are influenced by the others. Creation is a vital need, because my work is without conscession and represents what I am and what I think. It cannot be influenced by a fashion or a way of making, even if it can hinder the evolution of my career. On the other hand, I accept the critics and the remarks about my work, because that helps me to progress. But I shall always remain honest with me even.
B.C. : Can you describe your most recent ecstatic visual experience?
T. : It was during an exhibition of paintings and sculptures of Olivier de Sagazan in a Parisian gallery in April. I find his work really interesting and coherent. I attended one of his Performances last year during the Souterrain Porte V event and I find that his whole work is striking. The fact of seeing his works in the real life has an impact on me. We cannot have a reliable opinion of a creation by seeing it only on a computer screen.
B.C. : If someone is in your studio and reacts to a work as "difficult," how do you respond to this, do you think that is a compliment or a critique?
T. : I always hope that people will react to my work, no matter which they like or not. The worst reactions is the indifference. When I create, I express my vision of things, I try to make react the spectator, their opinion interests me. If somebody is shocked or wishes to criticize my work, that's not a problem for me, I ask only to these persons to argue their comments. I consider the human race as decadent and full of defects, my pictures are tormented, so I conceive that my work can disturb and be judged as" difficult ". But I see the world like a "difficult" place. I'm not afraid of the criticism as long as it allows me to advance in my creative approach.
B.C. : Do you censor the ideas or images in your own art to make it more palatable to the viewers? If so why?
T. : As I explain it previously, I always express what I think without worrying to know if people are going to hate or even reject my work. Many persons react too easily in functions of trends and modes. If my work is appreciated like it is, so much the better, if it's not the case, it's not a problem for me. In every case, I shall pursue my creative work on the same way.
B.C. : Do you believe that art should always provide a message to the rest of the world and if so, how much do you find yourself responsible for that?
T. : No, I don't consider that a creation necessarily has to provide a message to the world. There are many works I like for their message and sometimes for others reasons... an atmosphere or an impression for example.
For my part, I chose to dissect the blackness of the human being, to represent a reality which hides behind the world such as we know it. So there are messages in my work, supported by codes and symbols. However I don't consider to have a particular responsibility or a mission with regard to the world. I represent simply what I see in my way.
B.C. : Do you think of your art as existing within a moral context, do you think that a moral context is necessary for true creativity?
T. : I think that my work would be different if our world and our species were different. To approach these themes does not aim at giving a moral line of conduct to the human race. I'm only a spectator who place the human being in front of a mirror, if he doesn't like his reflection, he's free to do what's necessary to change.
B.C. : What is your favorite piece that you have created?
T. : At the moment, the series " The Void ", composed by my last illustrations contains the pictures which correspond the most to my vision of The Orbscurarium. The concept of this series treats about the false truths that the human being invents by refusal of his condition. But these false truths poison people who become only empty shells. This theme of "Void" has various aspects in this series of pictures, like the scientific extremism ("The Skeleton Key" N°2), the religious extremism ("Reflected Void" N°1) or the hypocrisy concerning ourselves ("Malignant" N°3)... But they are only themes, each can have his own interpretation and feelings of these pictures.
However, I prepare a new series of illustrations which will constitute an important stage in my creative approach. They will be certainly my best pictures, much more ambitious and close to what The Orbscurarium represents for me.
B.C. : If you had an uninhibited alter-ego who could make any type of art at all, what kind of art would he/she be doing? Describe it
T. : This alter ego would be a musician. This person would compose pieces having the same themes as my visual creations, by using another tool. I imagine that this music would be dark, cold and impressive, with abstract parts.
I was always enticed by the music, it is a big source of inspiration for me. I shall dedicate myself to this shape of creation one day, but at the moment, I am going to pursue my visual work.
B.C. : Who would you invite to a small dinner party you were hosting. The person could be living or dead, including fictional.
Describe why this person is your choice.
T. : I can choose an artist whom I consider as a mentor, to discuss with him of his work and life, his vision of the world... that he gives me advices and his opinion on my creations. But it's a thing which I have a chance to realize. So I prefer to choose a person whom I am certain not to meet in the real life. I think of somebody who represents for me the highlight of the human decline,maybe a dictator or an unreliable politician for example. My answer can surprise, but I think that a confrontation with this kind of subject of study would allow me to advance in my work. I shall analyze his tormented mind to represent in a new creation what the human being contains of worse.
B.C.: How do you define success in terms of what you are working towards? (what is the ideal scenario for you in 10 years time?)
T. : My definition of the success is to live by my personal work. I would like to build The Orbscurarium every day without needing a secondary job. As I explained before, I don't speak about celebrity, but to have the chance to express my creativity without meeting obstacles. This is my aim and I hope it will be feasible in the futur.
I shall also like promoting the dark Art in France. One of my friends, Delphyne V., one painter talented, is really motivated to develop the alternative Art in our country and I am ready to work with her to make it possible.
I have a dream since a long time... to create my own Art Gallery, to organize Events with Artists coming from the whole world. Maybe publishing Art books, DVD, magazines connected to this creative universe and to the artists who give life to it. Maybe in 10 years, I will work hard for this...
But everything is already very well for me at the moment, more and more people appreciate my creations, I get acquainted of numerous talented artists, I have already exposed my work with a lot of them. Furthermore, I have a great deal of projects in preparation with other people, everything takes place well for the moment.
Moreover, magazines such as « Alter Ego », help me a lot to concretize my projects and to present my work. I am extremely grateful to you for it, thank you.
Best Regards.
Trëz
B.C. : Thank you Trez, it has been a pleasure to meet an artist like you !
Alter Ego -
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