Image Culture

EP 036: Catherine Opie

Few have had such an impact on contemporary art as American photographer Catherine Opie. Her decades of work have helped redefine our conception of American identity, landscape, and culture. In this episode of Image Culture, William Jess Laird talks with the artist about her recent work photographing the sites of Confederate monuments throughout the United States and its relationship to Catherine's early photographs. In collaboration with Lehmann Maupin, Opie kept a travel log of her recent journey that can be seen at https://www.lehmannmaupin.com/viewing-room/catherine-opie [https://www.lehmannmaupin.com/viewing-room/catherine-opie] Stay in touch! @csopie [https://www.instagram.com/csopie/] @lehmannmaupin [https://www.instagram.com/lehmannmaupin/] @image.culture [https://www.instagram.com/image.culture/] @william.jess.laird [https://www.instagram.com/william.jess.laird/] @sjlev [https://www.instagram.com/sjlev/]

EP 035: Dan Thawley, EIC of A Magazine Curated By

This week I’m sharing a conversation with Dan Thawley, Editor in Chief of A Magazine Curated By. The magazine is unique in the landscape of fashion publications. The project was started in 2004 with the concept that each issue would be guest curated by a fashion designer, who would be given free rein over the content of the magazine. “Each issue celebrates a designer’s ethos: their people, passion, stories, emotions, fascinations, spontaneity, and authenticity.” The magazine presents an opportunity for designers to get beyond just fashion, and show the broader context of their work. The reader is invited to see the world of collaborators, references, and inspirations that contribute to a designer’s perspective. We get to understand the unique point of view of each designer who curates an issue, and, as you get to the final pages, you realize that you’ve had a truly intimate experience. I’m talking to Dan on the occasion of the release of A Magazine Curated By’s 21st issue, curated by Lucie and Luke Meier, the creative directors of fashion house Jil Sander. In our conversation Dan and I talk about his 10+ year history with the magazine, how he became Editor in Chief when he was just 20 years old, and the process behind the scenes of working with the designers. Over the years, Dan has developed a unique perspective on how visual culture influences clothing design. A Magazine Curated By has a great website where you can get a peak into iconic past issues with designers such as Martin Margiela, Thom Browne, Yohji Yamamoto, Simone Rocha, Jun Takahashi and many more. You can find this archive at amagazinecuratedby.com [http://amagazinecuratedby.com] or on Instagram @amagazinecuratedby Dan Thawley is on Instagram @danthawley [https://www.instagram.com/danthawley/?hl=en] I want to thank Dan Thawley, and the whole team at A Magazine Curated By, as well as the Lucie and Luke Meier for putting together such a beautiful, timely issue. Get your copy of A Magazine Curated By Issue No 21 online at amagazinecuratedby.com [http://amagazinecuratedby.com] . Our show is produced by Sarah Levine and our music is by Jack and Eliza. Find us on Instagram @image.culture [https://www.instagram.com/image.culture/?hl=en] or @william.jess.laird [https://www.instagram.com/william.jess.laird/?hl=en]

EP 034: SCOTT STERNBERG

On the show today I’m sharing a conversation with fashion designer Scott Sternberg, who founded the cult classic label Band of Outsiders in 2004, and, most recently, a new brand called Entireworld in 2018. We go back through the origins of Band of Outsiders, looking at Scott's idiosyncratic way of creating clothes, to see how this hugely influential brand was created. Scott tells me that the ethos of Band of Outsiders was an idea of making preppy clothes that were about preppy clothes. This sense of meta-narrative and playfulness in design always gave Band of Outsiders a unique point of view. Scott’s new project Entireworld focuses on the basics. He talks about approaching the brand as building a system for dressing, starting with the essentials, socks, underwear, and t-shirts. The brand's monochromatic sweats in myriad of bright primary colors have been a quick hit. It's an interesting opportunity to hear Scott reflect on his 11 year arc with Band of Outsiders, and how he's applying those lessons to Entireworld. You can follow Entireworld on Instagram at @entireworld [https://www.instagram.com/entireworld/?hl=en] and visit them online at theentireworld.com [https://theentireworld.com/] . Scott is on Instagram @scott.sternberg [https://www.instagram.com/scott.sternberg/?hl=en] Our show is produced by Sarah Levine, and our music is by Jack and Eliza. You can find us on Instagram @image.culture [https://www.instagram.com/image.culture/?hl=en] and @william.jess.laird [https://www.instagram.com/william.jess.laird/?hl=en] We'll be back next week!

EP 033: MADELINE HOLLANDER

Artist, choreographer, and dancer Madeline Hollander has a unique way of looking at the world. While creating her performances she never invents new movements. Instead, she’s always pulling from what she observes in the world. She has the amazing ability to isolate the ways we move our bodies in very specific contexts and use these movements as the building blocks for a sequence. For instance, she talks about the specific way our body twitches when we’re playing a pinball machine, the ways we’ve learned to interact with a touch screen, or even the set of movements required to perform the Heimlich maneuver. Beyond that, she also looks at the way our movements manifest themselves in larger systems, such as traffic patterns in New York or the motion of tug boats along the Hudson River. These things have their own ebbs and flows that she samples in her work and applies on a human scale. One of the most interesting aspects of Madeline’s practice is its diversity. She can be found staging performances with LA Dance Project or showing an installation of programmed car tail lights at Bartolami Gallery or even serving as the moment director on Jordan Peele’s latest film Us. Her way of understanding human movement is something that crosses traditional boundaries within the art world. The sensitivity of her eye for body language and gestures coupled with her background in traditional ballet makes her a unique voice working today. You can see more of Madeline’s work at www.madelinehollander.com [http://www.madelinehollander.com] Her installation Heads/Tails can be viewed at www.bortolamigallery.com/exhibitions/heads-tails/ [http://www.bortolamigallery.com/exhibitions/heads-tails/] You can find more information on Madeline’s work and performance at The Whitney at https://whitney.org/watchandlisten/44000 [https://whitney.org/watchandlisten/44000]

EP 032: SARA CWYNAR

This week I’m talking to the artist Sara Cwynar, whose work, in both photographs and films, examines capitalism and the aesthetics of desire. Sara’s new show Marilyn is currently on view at The Approach in London. Due to Covid-19, all works in the show, including Sara’s newest film Red Film, are currently available to be viewed online at theapproach.co.uk [https://theapproach.co.uk] until April 30th. You can find more work at saracwynar.com [https://saracwynar.com] & on Instagram @cwynars [https://www.instagram.com/cwynars/]