Step into Mark Borthwick’s world. He sends an open invitation, through his music, his poetry and his photography. But in these terms “music”, “poetry”, “photography”, please let the lines blur.
Click images to enlarge.
Comme des Garçons is blurring its own, bringing art and fashion physically together by showing them side-by-side in the new BLACK SHOP in Berlin. It’s there that Borthwick is currently exhibiting a series of Polaroids, extensions of himself in a white square frame. Part of the generation of photographers in the 90s who worked on the non-perfect image, or rather, allowed the non-perfect image to speak for itself, Borthwick published early works in i-D, Self Service, Purple Magazine and The Face. Inspired by love, life, family, nature, music and abstraction, here Borthwick tells i-D online something about the exhibition, something about its title, and something about his art, but you will have to search for any specifics. Follow the white rabbit along the yellow brick road!
What are these pictures of? Where were they taken? I’ve only seen the invite which is a beautiful red sky with shards of white across it. *they come from from reds and shards of light in indigo, hues of blues that seduce and rape this future’s landscape. One morning light lent me calling misty curious horizons bent my eyes to view you through, at windows calling where morning dew lay wet coved by you, a hole enticing, inviting an image to enlighten day light in.
What does the title ‘Fountains of Ardor’ mean? * the motion of light flowing to impassion you, your emotions imminent to entice you, your reflections love to fervour your truest feelings, revealing we’re all just ay feeling that spills you, your shadow through fountains of ardor, so to bounty my virgin’s vistas.
What’s the Comme BLACK shop in Berlin like?....”black”…. as lights will shine, as darkness dies of light, true to their faithful-filling image to question without answer.
Have you ever photographed Comme clothing? Yes, in the spring of many years.
When did you first come across the brand? What did you think of it? As a young one, in the early 80′s. I will certainly say there were very few designers who seduced me to peruse this quest and meander among these fashionable suns and further to this question, to find reason and something to believe in / perhaps attaching a sense of meaning, for after all, among all the mediocracy, there’s unbelievable brightness across the sea.
I always like it when photographers use Polaroid because it’s the instant camera, the one that, supposedly, anyone can use, but of course you are a pro, so how do you get what you want out of a comparatively very simple machine? * ha bless ya. Eye close my eyes and let the light in.
What do you consider to be a perfect image? Anything imperfect… out of place / falling / clashing / spilling decay to touch upon fermentation there for to fade, for perfection’s simply an abolished solitude. Blessed to be an amateur, “and always creating situations where by we loose control. Therefore, cheers to never knowing”.
What music are you into at the moment? Ah… so many a fine tune to share, yet mostly of olden golden times and the music of the mind turning among my universal urning to word in another world in… yet new lights… of recent blasting me came sun araw… “wingless angels”… Josephine Fosters an victor heroes group`s so many ay herb filling soup, love liz harris `s grouper, an dragging an ox through her water`s, chan marshal all`way`s.. pretty much any thing from mississippi record`s blasts me every time recently ishilan`n-tenere…. the last, ”earth” …….. bow ribbon`s / no neck blues band, the new collaboration of blues control and laraaji “the healing feeling wonderful. ilyas ashamed, another beautiful new light an then truly jacques brel, leonard cohen and victor jara, grathias xxx
What inspires your music? The love of gatherings, participating with altra voice who are “will shine”. Ay willingness to step out from my hibernation world, to collectively create opportunities to bring friends and lovers to gather among their finest vibration of feelings to be felt, it’s this seduceable movement in time that liberates the mind and truthfully gives time a reason to lose the mind in time.
Is there anyone you haven’t photographed who you would like to? Not yet, and yet again ya never know.
What’s the best piece of advice you have ever been given? “Don’t say no cos ya never know”.
Fountains of Ardor runs until 24th May 2012 at Comme des Garcons BLACK SHOP, Linienstrasse 115, 10115 Berlin.
Text: Sarah Raphael
Film: Excerpt from ‘Cat Power Speaking For Trees’, by Mark Borthwick.
