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14th Tallinn Print Triennial 2007

 

Info/Interviews

e-interview with Estonian artist Martinus Daane Klemet



Eve Kask: You studied at Kopli Art School and Tallinn Polytechnic. At present you are studying printmaking and animation at the Estonian Academy of Arts (EKA). What is your opinion of the level and opportunities in education in Estonia?  Are you interested in traditional printmaking techniques and what study opportunities are there in this field?

Martinus Daane Klemet:
In fact, I also studied Film and Video at Tallinn University (at that time, Tallinn Pedagogical University) in 2002–2003.  The level of education can always be better, but I think that it mainly depends on the person. If people have a strong desire to accomplish something, then they will find the right opportunities and search for the right top specialists in that field. At EKA, I have become acquainted with several traditional printmaking techniques, but as the BA lasts only 3 years, I have mainly been involved with one thing – digital animation and printmaking. The only fault in education might be that within 3 years one only has enough time to deepen one's understanding in one subject.

Estonian animation has been very successful in the international arena. Who is your favourite Estonian animator? And abroad…?


In Estonian animation, I like the use of the absurd and irony. There has been a lot of talk about Estonian animation, so I don’t think I have anything new to say. From the latest films, I was impressed by Andres Tenusaar’s Nonexistent Status. In my opinion, very powerful films come from England. I don’t see any common characteristic there, but probably what makes this scene so powerful is the crazy competition and their extensive experience.  It attracts people from all around the world.

Did the subject “Political/Poetical” inspire you? How?

To be honest, I made my animation first, and only after that did I notice that it ties in with the subject of the triennial and I could offer it. It has also been shown at several animation and video festivals abroad. 

How was Furryflurry born and what elements would you highlight?

The main idea was to juxtapose the micro- and the macro world – toys vs spaceships – and to refer to their similarity. In addition, the documentary seen on black and white TV about the two space stations or space ships docking returned my mind from my distant childhood. This had become fixed in my memory as a very strange activity, which is also relatively perverse. When the animation was already finished, I read by chance an essay by Baudrillard, where he also addressed this subject.  He called this docking of US and Soviet space stations "an apotheosis to peaceful co-existence".

You have said you are an experimenter and combiner by nature. Where are you heading now?

I would like to continue dealing with animation and printmaking using the language of animation. Recently, I have actually become more and more bored with all the technical experimenting in animation; there are an awful lot of experimental films made and I’m trying to move towards simplicity and the laconic. 

What or who is important for you in art?

I like all kinds of witty ideas. Unfortunately, literature inspires me more than art. Unrealistic fiction flavoured with strong grotesque imagery and symbolism. For example, works like Pelevin's Numbers or Julian Barnes' A History of the World in 10½ Chapters.

What was the highlight from this year's print triennial and what in your opinion was missing?

There were several interesting works there. For example, Elina Julin’s works on peace and certainly Xu Bing’s “Cultural pigs”! Maybe the only bad thing was that as there were so many works and most of them very conceptual, demanding a deeper engagement, and so I got tired in the exhibition hall quite quickly. So I urgently need a catalogue.   

What do you think – could art change the world?

In my opinion, gallery art can't change the world. On that point, I believe rather in activists similar to Yes Men, where the borderline between activism and art is very turbid. At the same time, I don’t think that social criticism and the desire to save the world should be the only subjects in a person or artist’s life, there are also other things.