OFLUXO

The artbook includes a six page interview by Leon Sadler, a preview can be read below.

LS: What is the context that your work exists in?
YVG: I’ve been obsessed with videogames since I got my Pentium III computer in 1999. My fascination with gaming culture and surrounding imagery has demanded my attention for years now. There was a time, as an art academy student (around 2007), where I was hooked on World of Warcraft and kind of saw video games and gaming culture as something to be ashamed of. I tried to suppress it and choose to delve deep into image-making, silk screening, contemporary art, etc. Which explains why I see ‘image-making’ as a game. Either way, in my early twenties there was a divide between these amazing virtual interactive worlds and the art I was making. I’m happy that this gap has been closed in recent years and I’ve learned to embrace digital tools to create work. Apart from my analogue drawings, my artwork exists in a virtual context, digital context.

LS: This is a question I was once asked and enjoyed writing the answer so I thought you might like it too; When was the last time you felt bad about drawing?
YVG: Hahaha. I don’t remember feeling bad about drawing. I do remember when I felt good about drawing. So, sometimes I draw in a little sketchbook or on some very shiny paper I bought years ago from a small printing place in Belgium (Berchem). I love the slippery nature of the paper’s surface, it’s great. Either way, I was on a little hiking trip, with my girlfriend’s family, last November. I brought a little sketchbook with tons of old dumb drawings in it. I remember sitting down in this really big couch (it covered two corners and was made for like 10+ people). I was just sitting there, listening to my sister in law, talking about her experiences of cruise ship vacations. Bill Evans was playing from my phone and there was a really relaxed mood. Everyone was tired from walking, it was evening, great vibes overall. Either way; I drew a ton of scribbles, really free, open ended characters and shapes, no real connection, no context. Basically some lines and smiles on paper. And it felt so refreshing, to not give a fuck about what I was doing. It was quite therapeutic, and probably the best drawing session i’ve had in years. Most of these drawings are in this book btw, it’s the scans with the yellowish paper, with rounded corners.

Yannick Val Gesto (born 1987, Borgerhout, Belgium) is most interested in cyberculture, psychology and image-making. His drawings and installations explore the relationship between digital perfection, expression and human error. He has exhibited internationally at places like Higher Pictures (US), Bid Project Gallery (IT), Sunday Art Fair (UK), NRW-Forum (DE) and Ausstellungsraum Klingental (CH). He is currently living and working in Hemiksem (BE) and is represented by Levy.Delval (BE) and Cinnnamon (NL).


CLOSE BOTH EYES TO SEE

21 x 30 cm
170 pages
Blue fore-edge
Edition of 100
Published by Chambre Charbon, Boris Détraz
© 2019 Yannick Val Gesto