Hi
Nicole,
Thank
you for agreeing to this interview. The first question is pretty
obvious: Why is your page called ‘Thee Nd’? Is it just a play on
the pronunciation or is there a more profound meaning to it? Is it a
reference to global pollution and its terrifying consequences or a more private
matter?
The answer is yes to all of the above meanings, Maurizio,
and including my initials into the mix. The genesis being having watched the
completion of many films and there graphically would be my initials in capitals
and I liked how it looked and sounded and meant in my head and have used THEE
ND as my artist name since I started making art, and as time has progressed, it
has become even more evident and to me that – yes - it is now sadly a statement of the decline of
our civilisation and our planet as we knew it .
What is
it that usually prompts you to take a picture and how important is the
subsequent editing phase?
I am surrounded by beauty and precious moments.
Things, scenes, happen spontaneously around me, I rely on chance, serendipity
and opportunity. I take
pleasure in capturing and creating the very beautiful and the inescapable
through image though not always necessarily by intention, but as I have
observed it is a consequence of many factors and some additional unexplainable
force. Culminating in a photo collage or the basis for a design, or pure
straight unadulterated photography.
One of
your favourite subjects is the forest raven. What is a ‘corvus tasmanicus’
to you?
They are absolutely fascinating to me, though I cannot
say I am the same to them ha! As they are very furtive and highly alert
beautiful creatures, and resist any possible contact, and they are very aware
and wary of me photographing them …these particular Raven's eyes have a bluish white sclera and you can see and feel
their strong life force and intensity. I am very fortunate as I live very
close to the edge, on a clifftop, at bird height, overlooking the sea, which
has a very old gnarled casuarina tree which lurches out over the cliff and
"my Ravens" thankfully continue to visit it …ever suspicious of close
encounters, I must photograph them through my house's large windows, or I can
capture them in flight during their travels, or photograph others roadside
eating roadkill carrion of possums and wallabies …they seem to appear everywhere
I go - even in the city !
Nature
in all its forms (landscapes, animals, natural phenomena) seems
to play a pivotal role in your art. Besides, these photos alternate with
depictions of plants releasing gases in the air. Do you seek to raise awareness
of what we could lose in the not-so-far future?
More-so
statements ... I am glad if I do raise awareness about "The Great
Decline". Nature and all that word encompasses is moment by moment
threatened, and being irreversibly destroyed on all fronts, it is losing
against Man's unstoppable disregard and insatiable greed ...I am pessimistic
about any retrievable outcome or viable reversal of it.
Throughout
the creative process, when do you know that you’re done with a photo and that
what you’ve got is exactly what you wanted to obtain?
What is stimulating to me is the not knowing, light
bulb moments, in being surprised, watching lucky "accidents" occur, -
and for the feeling of knowing when an image is complete in itself. I wholeheartedly
agree with the great Jean Cocteau that "Art is a marriage between the
conscious and the unconscious."
I’ve noticed
you also took pictures of the Pausiris mummy exhibition at the
MONA. What is your relationship with your surroundings and
your country and to what extent do you think place and local history and
traditions influence the individual, both in a positive and a negative way?
Ah the wonderland masterpiece that is David Walsh's
and architect Nonda Katsilidis’s xMONA+ ! - to which I am a frequent visitor
and great admirer - and not just for the art exhibited there as xMONA+ is the
product of combined personal vision artfully executed making its vibe
extraordinary ....now Pausiris lies serenely sombre, secreted below in his
chamber there, suspended in centuries of time and timelessness, it is a
powerful exhibit ...and I visit the chamber to feel it ....
I really
love Tasmania and I am very fortunate and appreciative of living here even though
it has an extremely unpleasant early history during the British colonisation of
it and their deliberate genocide and atrocious treatment of the original
inhabitants ...to me there is no lingering pall, just a strong bridging
connection with all past inhabitants particularly felt through
experiencing the same topography, nature, seasons and skies.
Nowadays
an enormous number of people are able to share their artistic
output but making even little money out of it to pay the bills
seems to be harder than ever, even for the professionals. Do you think
governments should support and encourage noteworthy artists without
connections?
Yes - and
by doing so it also reinforces the value of Art.
Thanks
again for your time.
THEE ND'S related links:
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