A Corner of Home Katy Hundertmark
A CORNER OF HOME
Katy Hundertmark
Published 11 May, 2020
In the days that have passed and the days that are to come, we'll all be spending more time indoors. A Corner of Home collects photographic studies and new works made by artists in their immediate environments; small snapshots of the impulse to create.
Edited by Trine Stephensen and Joanna Cresswell
1. Where are you living at the moment and how has that environment shaped you creatively? Can you tell us about a favourite detail of this place and why?
I moved to Amsterdam a week before the lockdown officially started and live by myself in a small studio apartment not far from the city centre. Like many of us right now, I spend most of my time inside or walking around the shut down city by myself, carefully exploring my new home. Although I am still pretty busy with work, the current environment is making me slow down and look at my surroundings even more closely – maybe because I’m new here and maybe because time seems to have lost a bit of its speed. Being alone has always been an important ingredient in my creative process and I often feel like my creative mind charges more when I’m alone. This is why a lot of my previous work was made during time spent alone on my family’s disused farmhouse in the German countryside. I now find myself tapping into that mindset, taking the time to handle myself, my ideas and my creativity with more patience and care, while at the same time reflecting on the role of the artist’s voice within this crisis. I can very much relate to the phrase that Nico Krijno used in his A Corner of Home interview: ‘I’m busy filling the cup before the next creative outpour’. My favourite detail of the place would be the droopy tulips on my desk, because they keep the place colourful and are so gracious in their defeat.
2. How have you looked at the materials of home differently in the past weeks? Are there parts of it that have revealed themselves to you in new ways?
I am definitely looking at my personal items and habits with a different awareness at the moment. Having just moved here, most of my materials and belongings are only gradually reappearing from boxes and suitcases and it’s been a very slow process so far. I’m enjoying rediscovering images and objects that I hadn’t seen for a while, especially photographs of family and friends have emerged with new importance and meaning.
3. Tell us about how you’ve been using photography lately? What are you making or putting in front of the lens?
I split my time between two different interests, my own work and the co-production of a Scottish photography journal called Notes. The publication comes out twice a year and combines portfolios, essays, book reviews and more. So I spend a lot of time engaging with photography in print, online or in (virtual) galleries and then bringing selected works together in the context of our editorial vision. In my personal work I’ve been very intrigued by the surface and depth of the photograph, without actually using my camera very much (to be honest it usually sits in its bag waiting for that cup to pour out specific ideas for images). I tend to think through materials, objects, fabrics and sculptural forms before bringing the camera into the equation. The photographic space has always resembled a stage in my work and lately I’ve been developing sculptures that play with our conception of space and create the illusion of physically being able to step inside and inhabit photographs – the thought of which I find extremely soothing at this particular moment in time. Thank you for reading and take good care everyone!
