Following her graduation show at Konstfack, Sandra Zupanic won the newly-ordained prize Favourite of the Year from Konsthantverkarna, the Södermalm gallery and shop specialising in arts and crafts. They gave her the opportunity to show her work as a window installation in their space at Södermalmstorg. Passersby will be able to see her non-digital GIFs animate IRL (in real life) from the January 11 to January 21.
Tell us a bit about yourself!
I originally studied fashion design at Central Saint Martins in London, then I started to explore animation in an experimental way, both analogue and digital. I was looking for a way to merge my interest in textiles with my fascination for animation and transformation. With this in mind I started my masters in textiles at Konstfack which I completed earlier this year.
What is the idea behind your upcoming GIF exhibition?
An Animated GIF IRL is a physical representation of the viral phenomenon of animated GIFs. It is about translating between the digital and the analogue realm. The physical GIFs are made from what might be millions of seed beads acting as the analogue counterpart to the digital pixel. Being time-based, although it relies on mechanics inspired by old school animation devices, An Animated GIF IRL has more to do with perception than the actual physical movement itself.
At the Venice Biennale this year some say there was less digital and video-based art than usual. What do you think of the future of digital – do you think we are moving away from it?
Yes, I have seen this tendency as well. I don’t think that we are moving away from digital, but I do think that with the emergence of new technology, especially when it reaches the mainstream, there will be a counter-reaction and this is what we are seeing now. I think it has to do with a longing for tactility; to work in a more analogue way, to experiment and to understand how things really work. Transcending the digital realm is for me connected to wanting to import its qualities into the physical world – how would it look like IRL?
What are your plans for the future?
I want to continue to develop the concepts I have been working with in this project. I am seeing these ideas presented in a large scale, there are so many possibilities and it is something that I am working towards securing funding for. Other than that, I am working on a few collaborations with friends in different fields, both fashion and art. I am interested in so many different things and I hope I can find a way to combine them all!
See more at www.sandrazupanic.com
The window installation will be at Konsthantverkarna, Södermalmstorg 4, 11-21 January
