Armsrock
interview conducted by Adam Gildar, photos by Matthew Novak
Some artists demand their work speaks for itself. Rather than leaving the art open to interpretation, more often these vows of silence leave someone else to speak on the artist's behalf: a critic, a curator, or worst of all, no one.
Danish artist and investigator of human form and fragility, Armsrock, does not belong to this milieu of self imposed creative mutes. Though a spry 24 years old, with the appearance of a typically atypical DIY kid, when this wheatpaste aficianado and prolific sketcher speaks, he does so with the frenzied eloquence of someone who seriously contemplates the "why" of his endeavors. When I sat down with him at the Andenken Gallery before his solo show, "The end of the world came and went without Mr. Jones noticing a single thing", Armsrock articulated an earnest philosophy that combines the action-oriented, socially conscious ethos of anarchist and hip hop cultures with a sincere intellectual curiosity. And despite the fact that he wanders whether man kind's atrocities outweigh its acts of kindness, his exhuberant disposition can hardly be considered gloomy.
The Denver show's title exemplifies Armsrock's continued explorations into fear, isolation, violence, and power, posing the subtle question whether we as individuals are perhaps unwitting agents of our own destruction, daily contributing to the manifestation of a collective paranoid fantasy we call Armageddon.
Armsrock first gained recognition from the New York based husband and wife-run street art blog, Wooster Collective for his ephemeral life-size sketches of people placed amidst the chaos of urban environments. These detailed, gestural exaggerations draw from archival journalistic imagery, the artist's personal interactions, and a rampant imagination. Reinserted into cityscapes as objects of coincidence, these many depicted personalities, fated to decay, are his attempt to engage people in a dialog with their environment, even if only for a moment.
When approached about a gallery show, one might think a struggling artist would immediately jump at the opportunity to cash in on their endeavors. However, Armsrock, who once worked simultaneously as a bike postman and vacant lot groundskeeper, questioned the validity of galleries as "potentially out of key" with his personal motives. Encouraged by the passionate Wooster duo, Armsrock eventually found room for his vision within the world of white walls; He discovered that these constrainted yet empty spaces allowed him to explore more complex narratives between his open notebook characters, and by utilizing site specific installations he could continue to explore momentary art, only this time in doors instead of on the street.
If he once found gallery work potentially problematic, once the decision was made to step inside, Armsrock hit the ground running. He has since participated in solo and collaborative exhibitions in museums and galleries across Europe and the US. By no means though does this mean the commodification train is about to pick up this young man of intention. When I asked if he would ever consider contributing to a commercial or political advertising campaign, before delving into an extensive treatise on the problematic nature of modern iconography and mythology, he expressed conviction wthout hestiation, "Hell No!"
"Andenken", a German word which literally translates to "memory" or "keepsake" depending on the context, is a suiting title for the art space at 2990 Larimer in Denver. Andenken works with an evolving cast of artists, who often leave behind keepsake installations, turning the building and often surrounding neighborhood structures into momentos. In the case of Armsrock, though his installation marks left in the showspace will likely disappear with his departure back to Germany, the impact of his evocative imagery and candid personality will certainly embed themselves as deeply ingrained memories in the mind of at least one Denver illiterate.
* Although Arsmrock spoke about himself and his artwork at extensive length with ease, a microphone malfunction caused his voice to go unrecorded. And so, due to illiterate A/V issues, an not to any tight lipped mantra of his own, I have paraphrased to the best of my ability our conversation relying on the piecemeal recollections of a nearly two hour long conversation.
proof that an interview actually occurred.
.jpg "Ryan Riss | November 4 - October 28, 2011")
