Interview with Vaka Valo

q) Introduce yourself, name,age, location.

a)My name is Vaka Valo.  I don't celebrate my birthday.  I mostly live between East Asia, California, and Northern Europe.  Like a Comanche, not a Cowboy.  The world is my home.

q) Can you describe your path to being an artist? When did you really get into it?

a)I suppose it occurred sometime early in my childhood.  My parents could not afford a piano or lessons, so naturally I turned to creating visually with the standard tools of expression and household items.

q) Describe your ideals and how they manifest in your work./Is music a part of your studio time?/What do you listen to?/How would you describe your work to someone?/Influences?/Describe your process for creating new work.

a)I have many vast and varied influences.  Too many to list in this interview.  If one is specifically talking about particular art movements or periods of history, it constantly shuffles and is dependent upon the project I am working on.  I certainly hold the Dadaists and Surrealists in high regard, but also everything that happened before these movements and everything after.  The music and processes of John Cage and Brian Eno are a constant inspiration to my approach in creating.  My projects begin with curiosity, then a series of ongoing intensive experiments follow.  If I like the results, a system is introduced and a project organically arises from that.  I just stay very curious.  Ideas are too limiting.  All of my projects involve chance elements for raw material that I have no control over, then I create something original from that.

It is from this the context change that the raw material transforms into something else entirely.  I like having that type of self-imposed limitation upon my work.  It makes for very interesting and unexpected results.  Both the elements of chance and contextual transformation are very exciting to me.  In any art form.  My goal is to tangibly realise chance occurrences into an ordered artistic arrangement so other people can enjoy the images in my mind, whatever form they may take.

q) What advice do you have for artists looking to show their work?

a)It seems the creation of a personal website to display work would be primary.  The Internet has made this easier than any previous time period.  One's audience is no longer limited by current geographic coordinates or timelines.  That being said, nothing compares to experiencing a work of art in person.  It also seems there are no rules to this type of thing, which is both daunting and encouraging.

q) What are you really excited about right now?

a)This current season, Autumn.

q) What do you love most about where you live?

a)Being just a few steps away from the ocean.

q) Best way to spend a day off?

a)Getting lost in nature with close friends.

q) Upcoming shows/ projects?

a)I have recently created and launched a website to display my ongoing projects.  My goal is to obtain funding/gallery representation so I can print/frame/exhibit/create editions/books of my projects.  I cannot afford to print/frame/etc. on my own, so I hope my website will help me to obtain funding somehow.  All of my projects are ongoing.  Things will appear and disappear as they are created.