Focus on: KyttenJanae!

We don’t know much about KyttenJanae, but it doesn’t really matter: we love her work. Welcome in Gif paradise. Everything is colorful, everything is expermental. Kytten work is very emotional and this is the reason why it’s so easy to connect with it.

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KALTBLUT: Who are you, where are you from and what do you do?

kytten: I am kyttenjanae. I am a media artist living in Los Angeles, California. I create interactive media, experimental animation, live concert visuals, and anything else I can get my hands on.

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KALTBLUT: You obviously like GIfS. What is it about this that you like so much?

kytten: Gifs are a favourite medium of mine for a number of reasons. They have a really rich history, especially because they were one of the first file types to allow animation. They were introduced in 1987, and despite all these advancements in technology, they’re still a corner stone of internet art and culture. Thematically, I love them because they make it very easy to capture a singular moment or feeling in time.

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KALTBLUT: What programs do you use to do it?

kytten: I use a number of programs – mainly Unity3d, Blender, Cinema4D, Processing, and Photoshop.

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KALTBLUT: What is your creative process when you create an image? How long does it takes you to do one?

kytten: The work began as an exercise to teach myself 3D programs. As I’ve gotten better, it’s become a weekly (sometimes daily) chance to clear my mind and focus on making something small. An emotion or a moment or a piece of text that inspires me will get stuck in my brain, and that’s when I sit down and do my best to express it through animation. It can be very cathartic. They take about two to four hours of uninterrupted focus.

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KALTBLUT: The human body seems to be the centre of your work, am I right?

kytten: Lately I’ve been really into using bodies in my work. It began with me being really fascinated by all these online 3D resources that would offer a “generic base mesh” to download. I thought it was really interesting that these models always seemed slightly male, but lacked any genitalia, and were always very fit, bald, and eyeless. The idea that this represented the “generic” human really struck me.

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KALTBLUT: All these bodies are deformed, squeezed, doubled,.. What do you want to say with your artwork?

kytten: As I got more comfortable using these bodies, it became about trying to express emotions and experiences with them. Conceptually, a lot of the work comes from a series of conversations I had with Thom Rugo about this duality we both believe in. We are captivated by the infinite beauty and infinite sadness in the world. We believe that the two both compliment each other, and need each other to exist. The feelings they cause sometimes are so unbearable – they can be so overwhelming and unbelievable and crippling, and it isn’t really good or bad, it’s just a part of being alive. So, there’s a lot of core themes that come from this concept, but especially alienation, anxiety, chaos, and sadness but also glory, power, and beauty.

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KALTBLUT: There is also a certain sexuality  glowing out of your gifs. What inspires you?

kytten: It’s funny – I get a lot of comments about how my work is very sexual and very druggy. I’ve never directly described any of it as either of those things. I typically try to post my work with minimal commentary. I love when people comment or interpret it though. I find it fascinating. I think a lot of that is other people projecting their own experiences, which is cool, because all I want is for other people to have an emotional response to what I’m doing.

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KALTBLUT: There is also a lot of sadness there….

kytten: Much of the work is very sad, and that comes from both personal experience and observation. I’ve found a lot of light in capturing those moments and feelings. It’s been very therapeutic. I want people to talk about it. I want to make things that people see and feel the need to respond to. I’ve found that in order to get these responses, I need to bare a lot of my own personal experiences. I love the vulnerability of it. It’s worth it, even if it’s sometimes painful.

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KALTBLUT: I love the way you use colours in your animations. What is your approach to colour? Do you follow a colour scheme or just follow your instincts?

kytten: Colour is so important to me. I think a lot of my work would be too dark without the color schemes I use. I have a handful of favorite colors – especially a very soft, rosy pink. I have slowly built a palette of saved materials and inspirational images, but I usually just follow my instincts.

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KALTBLUT: What would be your ideal commission?

kytten: If I could do a solo show by the time I was 24, I would be the happiest girl in the world! That’s my biggest goal right now.

Interview by Nicolas Simoneau

 

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Contact:
kyttenjanae.tumblr.com
www.kyttenjanae.com
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