An Interview by Alexandra Liakou

Eileen Botsford - on moments, time, truth and audience...

"I cannot see life in any other way rather than a series of moments, which frustratingly cannot be saved"

>> What does it mean for you to be an artist?
On hindsight I believe that an artist is someone who breathes through creating, we can all be artists but a few can live as artists.

>> What is the responsibility of an artist within society?
I never knew that artists have a different responsibly to society than that of all other citizens. As Eileen Botsford my responsibility within society is to bring back what I miss in society and hopefully others miss too.

>> What do conventions mean for you?
To me, conventions are social parameters important for the formation and structure of a regulated society. They are found in the smallest everyday things, which shape up the bigger social structure of our countries. In art we also unconsciously follow conventions, and the act of breaking them sometimes contributes towards emphasising them. In a few words, they form some of the rules in the game of life.

>> How much do you believe can you contribute on expanding the boarders of what is tolerated, what is appreciated or what is marginalised within society?
This is not my aim yet I enjoy toying with it. We all have questions on taboo/avoided issues and we all wonder if the others think alike or question the same things. If I manage to communicate these queries of mine with a substantial part of my audience, then I am fulfilled…for the time being.

>> You consider yourself to be a visual artist?
In the literal sense of the word, no. In the modern sense of the word, partly. I am a Public Artist, working site-specifically. That can incorporate many sectors of the arts.

>> Do you believe the visual medium to be the most effective of all media tools?
Not really. I believe very much in the intimacy and directness of sound. I think I have felt more pure and unfiltered feelings through sound then I have through site. But this is person-specific.

>> Would you include in your goals the desire to capture and express the truth?
Very much so. The truth to me is a feeling which its inexpressible yet possible to be felt. Don’t ask me how that works, its like a recordable silence, you can hear it but it has no sound really. So yes, answering your question, my daily goals include aiming to express the truth as a need and hope to break the theory I myself believe in…

>> In earlier interviews you have mentioned that your richest source for inspiration is nature. Do you believe to control your inspirational panel or does it control you, that is are you the catalyst of your own muse?
I don’t control my inspirational panel or look for it, there is no need to, it’s haunted me since I was young. What I do aim towards though, is enriching my life with opportunities to create new inspirational panels. I cannot think of anything more boring that repeating a tried and tested formula.

>> In terms of decoding / deconstructing artistic work, has your outcome a different level of connotations/messages in Greece – your home country – than in the UK?
My work is fabricated in transit! So none of my works has started and finished in one country; In Greece I see things ‘clearly’. This is in literal/visual and metaphorical sense. Hence as a result I use my time in Greece as a time for inspiration and creation and my time in London as a time for materialisation. This also seems to work well with the sociological structure of both countries.

>> Can art address universally, in terms of ethnic heritages?
To a certain extent yes. However art can also be very event-specific with reference to particular situations, which are more easily eligible by certain nationalities or individuals who have lived these events. However the direct feelings of love, fear, hate, anger etc. can be expressed through the communal channels art provides.

>> Is art for you a tool to express your inner voice?
I can’t think of any other reason art would exist if it was not able to fulfil that.

>> Which projects motivated you to pursue your career?
A few actually. I have been told that the first ‘crucial towards my career project’ was the successfully completed task I took at the age of 3, to draw a slice of melon in 3/4 angle. My mother was very impressed.
Then came other projects during my time in Chelsea, such as proposals for the Science Museum - London, and then during my time at the Slade on my masters based on the Athens 2004 Olympics Opening Ceremony.
Since then my work has evolved in to new projects that enrich my career. I believe you need ‘career motivating projects’ at least once a month.

>> What colour has remembrance got?
Deep Red. Does that give you any hints?

>> Would you lend happiness a colour or a texture?
I would lend happiness the feeling of a breeze when walking on Delos Isle in August.

>> Is it more the desire to reach people or to express a digested emotion?
The later, but always and unconsciously, with respect and consideration towards your audience. But of course respect can be translated in many ways.

>> Is evolution a part of adaptation?
Definitely. Evolution is survival. And survival is reliant on adaptation. Evolution as an artist is the survival of new creativity. When I use the word adaptation however, I am staying clear of the word compromise. I would call it selective adaptation.

>> Is your art adapting to your energy?
I would ask, is my energy adapting to my art? It would be wonderful if my art had to actually adapt to my energy but I am afraid it is usually the other way round. I always have more energy then what I am physically able to express. The unexpressed energy and ideas escape and are floating in the air. What a waste. I sometimes think I need more than one body.

>> Do you believe in the cooperation of multiple artists?
Only when there is mutual respect, unegoistic attitude, and complementary talents. Otherwise it can be a small disaster. I am very specific with the people I choose to collaborate with. I don’t like wasting my or others time.

>> What are your current projects?
As much as I would love to tell you, I know from experience not to talk about current projects until they become completed projects.

>> What is a journey in life?
If we see life as a journey then I think we should use the word ‘journey’ with poetic license. I cannot see life in any other way rather than a series of moments, which frustratingly cannot be saved.

>> How much of your perceptions do you owe to moments?
I suppose all of my perceptions are owed to moments, that is if I see my whole life as a big pool of moments.

>> Do you believe a moment can be eternal?
This is something that has troubled me for 10 years. Yes I do believe a moment can be eternal but I am not sure why. 10 years ago I gained the ability to see time in a different way, and comprehend that time is a creation of man. On the basis of that I am still investigating how to express the feeling of this concept.

>> Can you explain nature?
It would be so boring to stick around in this life if I had found a way to explain nature. It’s like that story with the child on the beach trying to fill a hole he dug in the sand with all the water of the sea. (I think this was is the bible somewhere) Anyway the boy turns out to be an angel, on rather basic attempt if you ask me, to explain to some important figure in the bible that the hole is his mind, and it will never be possible to fit the context of the sea in it. This is a very convenient religious thought, I know, but I also believe in it. Some things we are not capable of conceiving, my quest is to feel the truth -not understand it, and to hopefully make others feel it to. Now that I think, we are all cable of.

>> Is your work balancing nature’s ying and yang?
At the moment no, as my work is not self contained and isolated, it is related to its residence- place of installation. My work is at times the ying and times the yang, and working site-specifically I aim for the surrounding environment to complement its missing part accordingly.

For more of Eileen Botsford's work and EBnefsi Design please visit www.ebnefsi.com