About SINGLE CLUB

O. We’re both rather skeptical of so-called ‘artist statements.’ Sometimes they make me think of my mother. When she picked up her photos, she’d start telling stories—none of which were actually visible in the images.

K. And your father once asked, “I’ve got this photo here. Can’t you use it? Feel free to take it.” An interesting thought on the subject of authorship and the use of photography?

O. Sometimes I look through folders of so-called Daily Shots—one folder’s called “Snapshots.” I’ve never deleted or thrown away a single image. What about you?

K. I do delete images. Just to maintain a little control. I’ve never regretted it or missed a photo…
Back to the statements: sometimes I wonder if artists are afraid of being misunderstood. Does that also relate to the question of the artists’ identity? Or is it due to the constant public exposure?

O. Speaking of publicity: The idea of creating an edition with single images has been floating around for a while. Giving the individual image more attention. Now that this beautiful paper is no longer in production and we still have one last box of it, maybe it’s a good opportunity. Starting in August, for 10 months. Two motifs, each in an edition of 3. That could work.

K. I like that with an edition like this, as in our early photo zines, we can juxtapose independently created photographs from different series in a dialogue. This way, either entirely new themes emerge, or connections between previously unrelated works become visible.

By the way, I tried to structure our notes.
Keyword: Single Motifs

The cassette case from 2018. More of a random observation, not planned or staged. Almost found, you could say. Maybe even a byproduct. Actually, you were the one working with the cassette. Inside the case was a mixtape from 1983.

O. True. So what do we do now with these “Daily Pictures” or “Daily Nice,” as Jason Evans once called them?

K. The cassette case first appeared as part of “Album,” a series where you engaged with “everyday” people, which you then mounted in exhibition spaces. These different images were combined in the book. The “Daily Shots” were like B-sides to the “Portraits.” Printed on fold-outs—which we both actually don’t particularly like. But in this case, it made sense.

O. Second keyword: Color
Your book Colour Guide is right in front of us, because of Hiro, who invited us to participate in the summer festival of his “suzusan” label. “Colour in Mind” is the theme of his new collection.

A nice idea—to think about color a bit more again.

The motifs in your Guide are from various neighborhoods in Tokyo, Osaka, or Yokohama. From 2017. That’s when we did the first Walks for “Japanese Lesson.” Really interesting districts that our friends always referred to as “Deep Japan.” The residents there often still struggle with stigmatization and discrimination for historical reasons. We discovered that gradually.

K. During the conceptual, centrally perspective walks, we kept capturing individual motifs to the left and right. Those were temporarily sorted into a different folder.
We’ve often asked ourselves why we find these somewhat neglected areas—with their old residential houses, workshops, small factories, recycling yards, or cheap hotels for day laborers—so appealing. Is it the colors? The seemingly random combinations of colors that remind us of the strict color rules of Le Corbusier’s palette?

O. To some extent, I’d say yes.

K. “Color” as a purely aesthetic theme in photographic work hasn’t really interested us so far. Of course, we always decide anew whether a motif or series should be photographed and produced in color or black and white. Usually, it’s for content-related reasons. Occasionally, motifs appear in both versions across different series. Lately, we’ve been working a lot in black and white. That’s also because of our copier, which we use as part of our development process. And its toner application has a particularly beautiful quality—this special matte surface appeals to both of us.

O. Back to Hiro: He describes a view from a train window, a particular film scene, and other impressions from daily life that make him think about colors.
If I look back at the catalog The New Colour Photography now, I have to admit how much this visual language has influenced me. What about you?

K. Among other things, sure. The photographs also have something very cinematic about them. We’ll take the catalog with us to our SITUATION #1 at suzusan, right? Then we’ll have about 11 or 12 books on the topic from our library as reference material. It fits well with our portfolio O.i.F. (Original in Farbe).