Sitting Down in a Virtual Swamp With Colleen Itani
Colleen Itani's artwork, "Apology," is featured in Saw Palm 11.
What’s your connection to Florida? What most compels you about America’s Australia?
I moved to Ocala, Florida (horse capital of the world) spring break of 7th grade. I remember walking into my first class, home economics, wearing a Paul Frank baby blue sweatshirt with the signature monkey on it. I also remember the class was full of goth kids and I immediately regretted my monkey shirt (Spoiler alert: I transferred schools shortly thereafter). I find it most compelling that you can drive for 8+ hours and still be in the same godforsaken humid state.
Tell us a little about your piece in Saw Palm. What inspired it?
"Apology" was created after reading David Foster Wallace's Octet. Octet was a welcoming read in a time of feeling displaced and unsure of how to function. I recently relocated to Tallahassee and was experiencing extreme emotional responses to my move, the piece is a playful result.
What do you hope people come away from your work thinking or feeling?
My earlier works stem from vulnerability. This carries through in "Apology" and continues to be a source of influence throughout my work. Lately I've been working in various ways: installation, performance, and drawing, investigating society and ownership in various spheres with attention paid to how transforming spaces can empower the feminine (specifically in relation to my own experience).
Describe your artistic process.
I use emotive mark making and non-linear text pieces with a desire to push boundaries through assertion; this is complimented by her candid and domestic craft, such as embroidery. I turn to poetry, essays, and other literary texts for inspiration. I love working on paper with oil pastels and the immediacy of the materials.
What advice would you give to beginning artists reading this spotlight?
There are so many challenges to making work (money, space, time). Take the constraints into consideration, and then figure out how to conquer them. I worked on very small drawings for years because I didn't have a studio to work in and I could store them away at night. Sometimes the challenges prompt you to think in more innovative ways (says a huge fan of dumpster diving).
Document your work!
And read Art and Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland!
What is the most surprising piece of art you’ve come across recently?
I was just at Art Basel in Miami and found a GEM. I experienced a piece called Lily Dale, a virtual reality experience, by FLATSITTER that blew me away. I've never done any virtual reality simulations before and this was overwhelming in the best way. I felt out of my body-- there was visual, audio, and physical stimulation that transported me from South Beach to this surreal environment. The piece is about a town (Lily Dale) that believes we never die and you engage with the mediums of the town in a meditative state.
Is there a certain artist whose work you find yourself returning to again and again?
I can't help it-- I always return to YBA, Tracey Emin. She is an assertive and emotional artist, uses text and sewing in her work AND she married a rock. What's not to love?
The “Florida Man” Twitter account curates news headlines of bizarre domestic incidents involving state residents, such as “Florida Man Fights to Keep Pizza-Loving Alligator.” If you had to write a Florida Man-style headline about yourself, what would it be?
"Florida Wo-man Climbs Into Sinkhole to Save the Donuts (and Succeeds!)"
Where can we find out more about you? Social media, website?
@holydonut and www.colleenitani.com
What’s your connection to Florida? What most compels you about America’s Australia?
I moved to Ocala, Florida (horse capital of the world) spring break of 7th grade. I remember walking into my first class, home economics, wearing a Paul Frank baby blue sweatshirt with the signature monkey on it. I also remember the class was full of goth kids and I immediately regretted my monkey shirt (Spoiler alert: I transferred schools shortly thereafter). I find it most compelling that you can drive for 8+ hours and still be in the same godforsaken humid state.
Tell us a little about your piece in Saw Palm. What inspired it?
"Apology" was created after reading David Foster Wallace's Octet. Octet was a welcoming read in a time of feeling displaced and unsure of how to function. I recently relocated to Tallahassee and was experiencing extreme emotional responses to my move, the piece is a playful result.
What do you hope people come away from your work thinking or feeling?
My earlier works stem from vulnerability. This carries through in "Apology" and continues to be a source of influence throughout my work. Lately I've been working in various ways: installation, performance, and drawing, investigating society and ownership in various spheres with attention paid to how transforming spaces can empower the feminine (specifically in relation to my own experience).
Describe your artistic process.
I use emotive mark making and non-linear text pieces with a desire to push boundaries through assertion; this is complimented by her candid and domestic craft, such as embroidery. I turn to poetry, essays, and other literary texts for inspiration. I love working on paper with oil pastels and the immediacy of the materials.
What advice would you give to beginning artists reading this spotlight?
There are so many challenges to making work (money, space, time). Take the constraints into consideration, and then figure out how to conquer them. I worked on very small drawings for years because I didn't have a studio to work in and I could store them away at night. Sometimes the challenges prompt you to think in more innovative ways (says a huge fan of dumpster diving).
Document your work!
And read Art and Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland!
What is the most surprising piece of art you’ve come across recently?
I was just at Art Basel in Miami and found a GEM. I experienced a piece called Lily Dale, a virtual reality experience, by FLATSITTER that blew me away. I've never done any virtual reality simulations before and this was overwhelming in the best way. I felt out of my body-- there was visual, audio, and physical stimulation that transported me from South Beach to this surreal environment. The piece is about a town (Lily Dale) that believes we never die and you engage with the mediums of the town in a meditative state.
Is there a certain artist whose work you find yourself returning to again and again?
I can't help it-- I always return to YBA, Tracey Emin. She is an assertive and emotional artist, uses text and sewing in her work AND she married a rock. What's not to love?
The “Florida Man” Twitter account curates news headlines of bizarre domestic incidents involving state residents, such as “Florida Man Fights to Keep Pizza-Loving Alligator.” If you had to write a Florida Man-style headline about yourself, what would it be?
"Florida Wo-man Climbs Into Sinkhole to Save the Donuts (and Succeeds!)"
Where can we find out more about you? Social media, website?
@holydonut and www.colleenitani.com
Colleen Itani is an interdisciplinary artist exploring the human condition. Raised in Alabama and Florida, she spent her youth despising the South (but has since come around to the palm trees). Her work addresses issues including vulnerability, feminism, and personal space. She has a BFA and BA and is currently pursuing her MFA in Tallahassee, Florida.
