Andrea Dezso Publikum Interview3

ART

Tunnel Books 1 2 3 4
Installation 1 2 3 4 5 6
Cut Paper & Silhouette
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
13 14 15 16
Embroidery 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Animation 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Public Art 1 2 3 4 5
Painted Journals 1 2 3 4
Sketchbooks 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Drawing 1 2 3 4 5 6
Porcelain 1 2 3 4 5 6
Kamiyama 1 2 3 4 5

WRITING

Illustrated Fiction 1 2 3 4
Non-Fiction 1 2 3 4 5 6

TEACHING

Interface Studio 1 2 3 4 5 6
Typography 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Collaborations 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Design Process 1 2 3
Book Design 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Immigrant Mural 1 2 3 4

George Mill from Publikum (GM): Your black and white illustrations fascinate with an abundance of details, refined pencil strokes as, for instance, in the story Mamushka which you illustrated and wrote as well. Andi, can you, please, explain which technique you are using, and whether the richness of details imposes hours and hours of work?

Andrea Dezsö (AD): I work long hours (up to 18 hours a day) over weeks or months, drawing my black and white pencil images. The process is quite slow because I like to make very worked-up, detailed pictures. I use a smooth Bristol board and all the available pencils between the softest 9B and the super-hard 9H to obtain a rich range of grays. I wear magnifying goggles for small details. I do draw during the day if I work on a deadline, but mostly enjoy working late at night when my family is asleep, there are no phone calls, chores or other distractions.

GM: Why this drive to collect rare objects – from a series of postal stamps devoted to gain control of the space, to the bracelets with real insects? It seems to us that all these objects speak a lot about yourself and your interests.

AD: I am drawn to the aesthetically unusual, odd, strange. To me insects are beautiful and perfect in every way.

I have been in love with space since I was a child in Communist Romania with all the space-race propaganda around. We learned that Soviet space exploration was the best, and Gagarin was our biggest hero. I love the naïvely bold imagery of that period, graphics meant to convey man’s power to conquer space.

I am interested in the ways images have been used through contemporary history to maintain power imbalances within societies, images designed to manipulate. They typically target people from less powerful societal groups: women, children, minorities, immigrants, the poor, the sick, conquered nations, third world countries. I believe it is very important for design students to learn about this ongoing practice and decide whether as professionals they will participate in propagating it or will stand up against it.

GM: Tell us, Andi, more about yourself - what are your dreams, aspirations, what kind of person are you, which color are your eyes and how much do you weigh?

AD: I get most of my ideas while traveling by subway, and often fall asleep while taking a bath. I follow rituals and routines, always order the same food at my favorite Thai restaurant: squid with chili and basil, sticky rice, medium spicy. I love good food. My husband’s name is Adam, my son’s name is Mark. Mark is 12 years old, his passion is computer games. He plays Purple Haze on the electric guitar. Adam and I met in 1995 at a New Year’s party in Budapest, Hungary where he lived as an American Peace Corps volunteer, and we’ve loved each other ever since. The most magical places I traveled to so far: Hawaii and Cuba. I enjoy growing things, I dream of having a garden one day. Maybe in Hawaii? For now I collect houseplants: orchids and carnivorous plants. I don’t work out because I find gyms boring and depressing, specially the ones with wraparound mirrors. In our home we don’t have a TV. When I travel I mostly watch TV shows of live surgery and strange medical procedures. I have always lived in cities. This past summer in Wyoming I sat under a tree watching an owl watch me. I biked every night alone and learned to tell time by the position of the stars. Nature always reminds me of death and transience, but then again most things remind me of death and transience. Sometimes in my dreams I fly, although not as often as when I was a child, then I flew every night. Darkness, moths and driving across bridges scare me. I have long hair, narrow feet and get migraines often. Occasionally I send postcards to people I love who died many years ago.