Nick Gentry is an artist from London who paints on recycled and obsolete technological materials such as floppy discs, 35mm film negatives, VHS cassettes, and X-ray prints. In doing so, he creates a conversation between digital and analog processes.
In this episode, Nick discusses:
-What the canvas of technological materials says to the viewer.
-How he finds charm in the materials that have already had a life.
-Where he actually obtains the floppy discs and VHS tapes to use for his art.
-How he uses ambiguity and pulling many different pieces together in order for the viewer to make their own interpretations about the art and what it means to them.
-The first time he made this type of art as an experiment, and how he left his work in the street to be picked up for free.
-His predictions for the future of technology and his hope that we don’t get lost.
-How he tries to suspend his judgment while making art, so that if a piece isn’t going particularly well, he can abandon it and move on.
-How we should learn from children and how they enjoy drawing and painting without thinking about if something is right or wrong.
-His advice for people who might be scared to share their work.
-The importance of being attached to your art while you are working on it, but then detaching yourself from it as soon as it leaves your studio (and that is where the daily practice comes in, because you can immediately move on to the next thing).
-His advice for people who have a difficult time moving onto the next thing.
-How being able to move on to the next thing also allows you to not linger on failures.
-How he draws inspiration from everything around him, especially nature.
Nick’s Final Push will inspire you to be unique.
Quotes:
“It tends to be a slow burn with these ideas.”
“It’s really hard to have a perspective in the moment because we are surrounded by so much that is stimulating us all the time. It’s only with time that we can actually reflect upon what happened and what it means.”
“With art, and my work especially, I’m not tying to provide any answers or predictions. I’m just trying to ask better questions than I was before.”
“Whenever you follow your passion, you just have the intuition to work when you need to work, and you find the time of day when you’re optimal and you work at those times.”
“I see things as more of a sequence rather than endpoints, so if that painting didn’t work out then that is not a problem to me, because that is just a step on a long road.”
“I think it’s just a case of going ahead with it and doing it and not pondering it for too long. Just seeing where it takes you.”
“For me, it’s all about moving forward on to the next thing.”
“Art has to be a personal exploration.”
Links mentioned:
Connect with Nick:
Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter
