I figured I had better be willing to answer some questions and get this party started.
Robin Jourdan's work explores how we relate to place. Placeness is how we connect to our environment, both real and imagined. This can include the (s)hero's journey, charting new courses, and translating natural phenomena into the visual and sensory. She uses handmade paper and mixed media to sculpturally explore the intersections of nature, science, and universal experience. The results of her work may initially appear light-hearted but, with time and attention, reveal deeper themes of subtle energy, power structures, and the voice of materials. Her work reflects a belief that all life has a place here and a stake in what we do next.
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| Pinecone Nebula (rjourdan) |
What do I love about making?
There is a certain freedom associated with making and making art. However, certain constraints make it more rewarding. Rules of play, rules of content, conceptions. I am not always the best with words, but I have some confidence in making pictures, so to do. Even young children can express themselves by making. The rules I engage in keep the process energizing. It is a great way for me, as an information junkie, to make sense of parts of the world that are interesting to me, and I hope others too. It is an action that helps me to understand myself better more often than I expect. It's a wonderful way for me to engage and offer a contribution to the world that maybe isn't wholly traditional. And non-traditional anything is up my alley.
Which materials do you like working with the most? What are some of the more unusual materials you've used to create?
Currently, I enjoy working with fibers, especially handmade paper fibers. Sometimes, they turn into paper; sometimes, something else but the same material. I like that they’re amenable to working with other mediums and can support a story, especially when involving place. There are other media that I have enjoyed working with, but this is my current fav. I like that it doesn’t require specialized equipment beyond the beater.
I can use the fibers in a myriad of ways, which is enticing and compelling. Without additives, however, they can be fragile. But I don’t expect my work to last thousands of years, although paper can last thousands of years, as archeologists are finding. That's pretty bonkers.
Some of the more unusual materials might not be so unusual to someone else. I’ve embedded zebra mussels in the paper pulp.
What do I love about fibers, digital art, and animations?
These are individual and, perhaps, one day, the work will be fluid across them. Fibers: I can feel them while I work with them. Additionally, ease of access, including additional content, texture, and pigmenting/dyeing, is relatively easy and non-toxic.
How do you evaluate your work?
One of the first things I look for is how the loud conversation supports the concept, balance, and harmony of elements, materials, and compositions that support the concept. Loud conversation? When the piece figuratively calls to you from across the room.
At a certain point, either I or the piece will smile. Sometimes the piece is too busy, that’s a problem I have quite often. So, then, I have to find the discipline to whittle out the unnecessary bits. That includes color and texture. Often, my intuition will offer additional suggestions that contribute to the concept, or at least contribute to a concept, an idea of sorts.
Where is your studio, and what is your primary work area?
My studio is in my house, which is most of my house. It’s comfortable and easily accessible, and most importantly, it doesn’t cost more money. This is important because I am not selling work. This way, I don’t really have to bear too much of a weight on that. I can work at all times of the day or night.
I can reflect on different pieces while in the process, recycle old pieces, and keep my materials handy and ready.
What clues or questions do you use to select an idea to invest time and resources?
I have a series of questions that I would ask myself, like: can I get enough material from the topic to make a body of interesting work. I'd need to develop a list of at least 8-10 ideas, not that all of them would make it into the studio. Then, I read about Laurie Anderson's 5 questions for art. She asks herself, is it:
- Complicated enough
- Simple enough
- Beautiful enough
- Crazy enough
- Stupid enough
I find this a super interesting list of questions I'm trying to adopt. Maybe she means the same as my initial list, but her list is much more poetic, light-hearted, and has an ease about it.
About your work: what do you hope people notice the most?
I hope they notice how the work makes them feel and perhaps think about how they respond to the work. Does it call to them? Do they want to spend a little time with the work? Then, if they're interested, it's cool if they dive into my intentions, the concept, the story. After that, if they notice the details of the making, colors, textures, or something perhaps special, that's a bonus.
I put a lot of energy into symbolism and other material and physical aspects of the works, but maybe that is more for me to learn about the concept and the ideas. I also put energy into balance and harmony, and what some call the loud conversation. That's like, if you're at a party and you see someone or something across the room, its appearance is such that you need a closer look. It compels, it intrigues, you want to know more. I learned this point of view from another artist, and I find it so helpful.
What is your favorite guilty pleasure?
This changes quite often, but currently, it's a few things: tiramisu cake, "Rick and Morty" (the animated series), and, oh, yeah, the Bee Gees' harmonies.
How do you define success as a creative? How do you hold yourself accountable?
I’ve thought about this for a while. The easy-answer success for many is sales. But, since art is a requirement for the artist only, that may not be the healthiest metric for me. So, I think for me, it needs to be something I have agency and control over. And I do not have control over sales. But I do have control over how much time I devote to making. That includes thinking, reflecting, writing, and researching, but mostly hand-to-material making. It’s a real luxury to be able to have some say in that and have it measured out at whatever bar I set for it. Am I reaching my goal? And there are moments when I realize an "aha" by another person that I think: I wish I had connected those bits myself. But we all feed the cycle, eh.
How I hold myself accountable is in the volume of work produced. Actually finished per the given time frame. That means perhaps finished work is further timed than hours of production, but they coincide, right? You’re not going to get finished work without putting in the time. And carelessly putting in the time isn’t going to guarantee finished work. Early on, I learned from a little story: a ceramics teacher took their class of students and split them into 2 groups. To the first group, they said that this group would be graded on making the finest vessels possible. To the second group, they said that this group would be graded on the volume of pieces made. When the semester ended, the group that had been graded on the volume of pieces outperformed the other group by a lot. The moral of the story: make a lot!
I also count the number of events that I enter. That’s also a bigger part of what I want to consider. I’m doing this to say something. No one is listening without getting the work out of the house. I have heard from enough people that getting into events is a numbers game. Much like having a good idea means you have a lot of ideas, the more events you enter, the greater your chance for success. I can't control how the work will be received, but I can have some say in how many events I enter.
Will you ever discuss things with your inner critic?
I started to say “all the time,” but then I stopped to ponder that. LOL… inner critic. I think I have an inner critic council or inner critic counsel. The critic council used to tell me how unworthy and un-everything-good the work was. Now, our conversations are less brutal and personal and more focused on how to reach a goal.
The "Angry Angies"* have been replaced by "Supportive Sarah's"*, and the group is more counsel than council.
*not real people.
What advice do you have about throwing away work?
This definitely depends on the situation. I try not to treat any of the work as precious, but I don’t want to waste materials either. So, if something can be recycled, I’ll let it hang back and rest until it’s time to drop back in. But if it’s hung around without contributing for too long, then its story needs to go somewhere, not here.
I’m learning new techniques to “upscale” and otherwise reuse the bits that aren’t working or whatever so I don’t have to landfill them. I really want to avoid that as long as possible. And that’s one of the excellent qualities of fibers—except for color, the base material can be renovated in many ways.
What advice can you share for artists who want to sell their work {online}?
Well, I’m learning this bit myself. I know it’s often a “numbers game,” so you have to take a lot of it with a grain of salt. It’s not personal, and it’s not about you as much as it might feel like it is. There is an art and science to selling, and it’s probably best to invest time and energy into it if it’s important to you.
What would you tell other artists when they get frustrated with a project?
Take a break and breathe. Don’t be afraid to pause. Maybe the project wants you to veer, and you must listen to that impulse. Sometimes, it’s that break of 10 minutes or perhaps more that allows you to accommodate your inner change. Albert Einstein famously said that we can’t find solutions to problems with the same thinking we used to create them. Thus, it is important to think fresh at times. We all have deadlines, so it can be challenging to press pause, but necessary. It may be that you need to grow a little more so you can come back to the project as a slightly different person.
Who are your creative influences, and whose work are you admiring now?
I am spellbound by the work of Myungjin Kim, land artist Jon Foreman, Agnes Pelton, Hilma af Klimt, Nicole Donnelly, Hannah Vogel, Galen Gibson-Cornell, Jenn Omaitz, and Joel Abouzit. Alternately, Mark Knofler, J.J. Cale, Khruangbin, Los Lonely Boys, and Stevie Ray Vaughn.
How can people follow you and your work?
By going to www.robinjourdan.com
I'm also on Instagram: @jourdan.studios
Dear Reader, this one is for you: Who do you think I should interview next? Why? Can you introduce us?
Thank you. I appreciate you reading this far!
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