Meet the artist-in-residence: Vincent Ceraudo

As we walk into the studio of Vincent Ceraudo (1986)  we enter a white and almost empty room. In the corner by the window there is a disorganized desk, on the wall a few papers are stuck. This is the studio of a film artist. Here, Ceraudo works daily on his latest video called From there we came outside and we saw the stars  which will be part of the upcoming group exhibition called ‘Secret Society’ that opens September 7. For this interview Ceraudo gives an insight into his working process.

 How did you become an artist?

First, I studied at a graphic design school. Often my ideas where refused because of the poetics and I ended up following someone else’s ideas which really demotivated me.  At one point my teacher told me “You do have the mind of an artist, more than a designer”. Eventually I went to arts academy where I found out I am happier when working by myself. At that time, I discovered Sartre’s philosophy which was really important for my development as an artist. The imaginary from Sartre is fundamental for me. This is a book in which he propounds his concept of imagination and discusses what imagination tells us about the nature of human consciousness. Trying to understand the mechanism and the psychology of imagination is fascinating!

“The library was my atelier”

 

 What inspires the most for your art work?

Ceraudo laughs, other works of art inspire me a lot just as the world around me:  interactions on the streets can really get to me. In the end it is all about reaction to the world and interactions around me.

You were born and raised in France, lived in the USA, China and now you live in The Netherlands. How does the country of stay influence you as an artist?

In France I was really young and I still had to find out who I wanted to be as an artist. I was mostly wandering around, looking for inspiration. Which is why I spend most of my days reading books. The library was my atelier.

The USA brought many human experiences. The social issues often resulting in exclusion were very present. Misunderstandings due to cultural gaps occurred on a daily bases. Something I now consciously and unconsciously use in my work. De Ateliers in the Netherlands  has a system of ‘studio visits’. This entails that artist all over the world visit each other in order to learn and get inspired. It provided me with many unexpected discussions, that was really helpful in my development as an artist. However it is hard to pinpoint how exactly this continued in my work.

Scrolling through Ceraudo’s website one comes across artworks in multiple media: movies, photography’s, objects, and installations. Although his work seems hard to define there are some recurring themes. How would you define your work?

Defining my work is really complex. Meaning that it is hard to put in words since it is an experience that people experience differently. I mainly aim to ask questions about space and perception. More specifically how our experience of reality can sometimes be an illusion to our senses. I Like to see my work as a travel through imagination – visual coincidences.

Children have an amazing imagination that sometimes merge with reality. In my work I try to recreate or capture those moments with a camera. I want the viewer of my films to perceive things in an alien way that allows the viewer to enter a different world. This means that my works are about phenomena that are considered not to be part of reality. An example of this is the work ‘Telepathic’ (2012), whether it is real or not does not matter, I want to draw attention to it so people open up to such phenomena.

Another theme I see in your work is China, specifically Paris City Ghost, why China?

(laughs) It’s so obvious but I always forget that. I travelled there while the terrorist attack in Paris took place. It occurred in Bataclan where I use to live only 500 meters away from. When it happened I was in the same city but on the other side of the world. This felt surreal so I tried to create a video which transferred that feeling named ‘Paris City Ghost’ (2015).

“I Like to see my work as a travel through imagination;

visual coincidences.”

You are currently an artist-in-resident at the AVL Mundo Foundation, how come?

Joep was a tutor at De Ateliers and he bought my work called out of body. It went very naturally and eventually I became a resident here. It came from both sides!

Ceraudo is part of the group exhibition that will open 7 September called Secret Society at AVL Mundo. As I asked him to tell me something about the work, Ceraudo immediately showed me what he has made so far.

The new work is called ‘‘From there we came outside and we saw the stars” . Last summer I had access to a highschool built by Giuseppe Terragni. It is a really famous modernist piece of architecture, built during Mussolini period. It is all about transparency and structure and it is still a school for children. What really interested me is that this architect is called a rationalist architect – and we know I work with irrationality a lot. Mussolini asked him to design a rationalist building for children, which is somewhat paradoxical as children are the most imaginative people. So I started doing research and I saw Terragni had a plan that has never been built: ‘Danteum’. It was supposed to be a monument for Dante, an Italian poet. I started rebuilding that building in Computer Generated Content (CGI). Eventually, mixed the shots from those two buildings. The video starts with the already existing building by Terragni, which is edited in a playful manner, the shots change as you change the planes of a Rubik’s Cube. The subtitles explain the conceptual aspect of the work and enhances the imaginary experience. Working with CGI is time consuming, and a lot of thought goes into it, it is a complex process.  However in the end when you watch it will be accessible and imaginative.

Gaëlle Choisne and Vincent Ceraudo are both artists-in-resident at AVL Mundo. Their art will be on display at the group exhibition Secret Society at AVL Mundo in September 2019.

An Inteview by Cecile van Bruggen, intern at Atelier Van Lieshout and AVL Mundo, undergraduate of the International Bachelor of Arts and Culture Studies and Double Degree with Philosophy at Erasmus University Rotterdam.