buni volume 2, 2006, #017

buni is a painter who currently lives in melbourne, australia. she is interested in how memories make us feel, affect our state of mind and provoke emotion. her works capture the atmosphere of a memory and reflect how emotion has connected with a particular phrase or image.

1. how would you explain 'art' - in 19 words or less? art is a subconscious thought process that finds its way from my head and comes out of a paintbrush onto canvas.

2. what is the first work of art you ever loved? i felt a deep emotional connection to rothko's paintings. it's not only the sheer intensity of colours and overwhelming size of his paintings that astounds me, it is the profound emotions that i find come out of me when i am before one of his paintings. something like meeting god, i fall to my knees. but my first love affair was with all the pieces i'd see riding the frankston line … i think these really kick-started my art in a way that i really connected with.

3. how important is theory to your art? most of the time the theory behind my work comes after i have completed a painting. i sit and look at it for a while, think about what i have done, and deconstruct it. although i had a little revelation a while ago … i was walking down a prominent red light district street, and i came face to face with a prostitute. normally i'd look away, but this time i smiled at this thin, pretty, smacked out girl and realised we are just the same; stuck in a world where we cannot see out. i came to understand later that day, that this is the reason i continue to paint strippers, porn models, and girls who use their body's for sex - we are all stuck. so i suppose it is important to me, but the viewer can take it or leave it. i don't need the viewer to think like me.

4. describe your ideal art workspace. 6m x 6m, light, a computer, concrete floor, white walls with a space where i can stick up all the bits and pieces i find, my music playing (very important), an armchair in the corner where i can chill, and a friend next door.

5. describe your current art workspace. 3m x 2.5m, dark, my computer, carpet with a drop-sheet, creamy walls with plastic tarp on them, a space where i have a few bits a pieces, my music playing, and my chest of drawers overflowing with clothes (it doesn't fit in my bedroom), a surfboard and shit all over the floor.

6. if you could be placed in suspended animation and safely reanimated at some time in the future with the sole purpose being to see how history treated you / your art, would you do it?
haven't you ever seen back to the future 1, 2 and 3? every time that marty goes into the future, back in time or to the ol' westin' days, it is always a disaster! i think it is never a good idea to know the future because i like surprises. my art is always a surprise, i never have a pre-conceived idea of what my paintings will look like. and plus if you know what is going to happen in your future, be it good or bad, you have nothing to hope for.

7. who are some of your favourite artists (contemporary or canonical)? ben frost is my all time favorite. every time that i get stuck, or have a block, i go to his site www.benfrostisdead.com and get some ideas. he is an artist i really admire for his 'not afraid to fuck the system' attitude. david bromley for his female nudes and his layering technique. kozyndan for their bunnies, all of their lovely little bunnies (we have two of their prints, a t-shirt, and a cd). monkey from melbourne for all the hot chicks he paints. rhys lee for his amazing way of painting fluorescent and sorbet colours together. ahhh, the list goes on …

8. tell us about a gallery (online or physical space) that you think rocks, and why you think it rocks. online … www.woostercollective.com is cool because they showcase art from all around the world, but is specific to street art and the dude and dudette that run it are really nice people. and sometimes they show pieces on rocks. and www.deviantart.com is rad because it is a free site that allows poor artists (like myself) put up an online folio for free, no money (and did i mention that it's free?). also there is tons of great art there. physical space … would have to be ACCA in melbourne. i do some volunteer work there and the ladies that run the place are soooo nice, and helpful and encouraging. they showcase inspiring contemporary art.

9. would you choose the baked bean jaffle or the caramelised pumpkin and red onion tart with crispy radicchio and hazelnut salad with apple vinaigrette? does either of them have chocolate in them?

10. finish this sentence: "the work of art can / cannot be considered separately to the artist because ________." the work of art cannot be considered separately to the artist because it is just a physical extension of their thoughts. however, i like to be anonymous from my art - this is why i use a pseudonym. i like to disassociate myself from my work, especially at exhibition openings because i like to hear people's uncensored thoughts, and sometimes the work can hold a lot of emotional weight, and i would rather people not talk to me about it.

check out more of buni's work at: http://im-buni.deviantart.com/

bump into things, mixed media on canvas, 2005

because they always, mixed media on canvas, 2005

this will be the last time i ever do your hair,
mixed media on canvas, 2005

i can't get no satisfaction, mixed media on canvas, 2005