SOCKET Magazine - London Metropolitan University
A magazine is synonymous with revelation, sharing and reflection; it is a colourful compact guide through ideas and suggestions that can stay with us even after newspaper headlines are shredded and hasty videos are scrolled away. There is no ‘perfect’ or ‘easy’ way to create and launch a magazine. Yet, the 20/21 BA Photography Year 2 students of the School of Art, Architecture and Design, London Metropolitan University, brought together their creative idiosyncrasies to produce a fantastic source of collective energy and inspiration – aptly called SOCKET.
Diverse photographic genres blend in a symbiotic narrative that features selected work from the students’ array of projects. They reach out to the world with an inspective eye (AGORA), follow people to their various roots (TRACE), expose our shapeshifting mood in our strive for survival (CHAMELEON), and shed a spotlight on digital heroes and hidden icons (EYESOME). The productive cross-contamination of creative practices (in this instance, photography, poetry and painting) is celebrated as a serious field of enquiry in which the process of discovery transcends to the final outcome.
Yiannis Katsaris
Senior Lecturer, BA Photography
London Metropolitan University
A magazine is synonymous with revelation, sharing and reflection; it is a colourful compact guide through ideas and suggestions that can stay with us even after newspaper headlines are shredded and hasty videos are scrolled away. There is no ‘perfect’ or ‘easy’ way to create and launch a magazine. Yet, the 20/21 BA Photography Year 2 students of the School of Art, Architecture and Design, London Metropolitan University, brought together their creative idiosyncrasies to produce a fantastic source of collective energy and inspiration – aptly called SOCKET.
Diverse photographic genres blend in a symbiotic narrative that features selected work from the students’ array of projects. They reach out to the world with an inspective eye (AGORA), follow people to their various roots (TRACE), expose our shapeshifting mood in our strive for survival (CHAMELEON), and shed a spotlight on digital heroes and hidden icons (EYESOME). The productive cross-contamination of creative practices (in this instance, photography, poetry and painting) is celebrated as a serious field of enquiry in which the process of discovery transcends to the final outcome.
Yiannis Katsaris
Senior Lecturer, BA Photography
London Metropolitan University
SWITCHCristian Marianciucthe artist that thrives in solitudeINTERVIEWWhen did you first become interested in origami?I have folded simple models as a kid, without knowing what origamiwas. I rediscovered this art form at university, where I tooka subject on Japanese Culture and wrote a paper on origami andthe story of Sadako Sasaki. I felt personally attached to her storybecause one of my sisters passed away after having struggled tothe same illness as her, leukaemia.How much time does it take to create one origami figurine?It all depends on the design I decide to go with. Since I am constantlydeveloping new techniques and signature elements andsince I no longer have time constraints, I tend to allow myself asmuch time as it is needed to complete one piece: which for mymost recent cranes means on average 15 hours.How many cranes have you created so far and how much influencehad Sadako Sasaki have over your creation?During my ‘1000 cranes in 1000 days’ stage of my project, Ifolded and decorated approximately 1200 cranes. And sincethen, I have allowed myself more time to perfect existing skillsand to develop new ones, so there was no longer a focus on thefrequency of creating new work, but rather a focus on creatingmore elaborate work. I would say that since 2017, when I concludedmy initial part of the project, I must have created around350-400 cranes.Why did you decide to make 1000 of them?There is a Japanese tradition called ‘senbazuru’,which promis es good health or the grantingof a wish to whoever folds 1000 cranes. Iwanted my project to be a respectful nod to thistradition.I thrive in solitude, sothis Pandemic hasn’taffected me as much.68East meets EastHow did it become a body of work?I would say it was a dual process: firstly, bythe sheer volume of work, and secondly bythe specificity and the recognizability of saidwork. Finding my own, original “voice” tooktime and a lot of exploration and experimentation,but once I found what it was that woulddefine me as an artist, I believe that was themoment my work became a cohesive body.Do each of your individual outcomes holdseparate context or influences or is yourpractice a matter of craft before concept?Absolutely! Although the vast majority of mywork has the same starting point – a traditionalorigami crane, each finished piece has a
distinct character. Each one exists in its own universe made upof multiple layers of meaning, both physical and metaphoric. Iused to rely on a more “free style” approach when I was startingout, but over the years I developed a precise and thoughtfulcreative process.What themes does your work with origami pursue and whatinspires your uniform creation?I look for inspiration in several places, some of the main onesbeing Japanese and Romanian folklore, Greek mythology,botany and, my most recent source of inspiration has been theworld of perfume – and to be precise, the relation between thesense of smell and memories and how this relationship could betranslated with the help of paper sculpture.How do you go about structuring your shoots of the origamipieces that are on your Instagram?I have a very improvised set-up for photography. It often is asource of much frustration since I am not particularly skilled inworking with a camera, but I make do. I try to use natural lightas much as I can and the “props” I use always must have a veryprecise role and meaning in the overall concept of the photo.Do you consider yourself an artist, andwhat does that term mean to you?I do, yes. I believe an artist is a person whotries to make sense of his or her environmentby “translating” that environmentwith the help of a craft or a meaningfulskill they developed over time and onethat reflects originality and a very personalperspective.How do you encourage your creativity intimes where you may struggle mentally,how have you been coping creativelyduring the pandemic?I started the project which led to mydecision to create art for a living out ofa desire to deal with a rather difficultstruggle with depression a few years ago.The plan was to fold and decorate oneorigami crane daily, for 1000 days. It wasboth an exercise in creativity and one indiscipline. That provided me with a ratherstrong foundation in terms of maintaininga healthy balance between work and selfcare.I thrive in solitude, so this pandemichasn’t affected me as much. In fact, I feelthat I have been more productive duringthese past few months than I have in a longtime.How do you measure success and inthat, what has been your most successfulachievement thus far within yourpractice?TributeI believe an artist is a person whotries to make sense of his or herenvironment by “translating” thatenvironment.I look at success through a personal lens.I will consider myself successful in mywork for as long as I will find joy andpleasure in what I do. I made a consciousdecision early on in my career as anartist to never measure my worth againstanything other than my own enjoyment.So, I would say that my most successfulachievement is having kept my passionalive until today, and hopefully for manyyears to come.@icarus.mid.air
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distinct character. Each one exists in its own universe made up
of multiple layers of meaning, both physical and metaphoric. I
used to rely on a more “free style” approach when I was starting
out, but over the years I developed a precise and thoughtful
creative process.
What themes does your work with origami pursue and what
inspires your uniform creation?
I look for inspiration in several places, some of the main ones
being Japanese and Romanian folklore, Greek mythology,
botany and, my most recent source of inspiration has been the
world of perfume – and to be precise, the relation between the
sense of smell and memories and how this relationship could be
translated with the help of paper sculpture.
How do you go about structuring your shoots of the origami
pieces that are on your Instagram?
I have a very improvised set-up for photography. It often is a
source of much frustration since I am not particularly skilled in
working with a camera, but I make do. I try to use natural light
as much as I can and the “props” I use always must have a very
precise role and meaning in the overall concept of the photo.
Do you consider yourself an artist, and
what does that term mean to you?
I do, yes. I believe an artist is a person who
tries to make sense of his or her environment
by “translating” that environment
with the help of a craft or a meaningful
skill they developed over time and one
that reflects originality and a very personal
perspective.
How do you encourage your creativity in
times where you may struggle mentally,
how have you been coping creatively
during the pandemic?
I started the project which led to my
decision to create art for a living out of
a desire to deal with a rather difficult
struggle with depression a few years ago.
The plan was to fold and decorate one
origami crane daily, for 1000 days. It was
both an exercise in creativity and one in
discipline. That provided me with a rather
strong foundation in terms of maintaining
a healthy balance between work and selfcare.
I thrive in solitude, so this pandemic
hasn’t affected me as much. In fact, I feel
that I have been more productive during
these past few months than I have in a long
time.
How do you measure success and in
that, what has been your most successful
achievement thus far within your
practice?
Tribute
I believe an artist is a person who
tries to make sense of his or her
environment by “translating” that
environment.
I look at success through a personal lens.
I will consider myself successful in my
work for as long as I will find joy and
pleasure in what I do. I made a conscious
decision early on in my career as an
artist to never measure my worth against
anything other than my own enjoyment.
So, I would say that my most successful
achievement is having kept my passion
alive until today, and hopefully for many
years to come.
@icarus.mid.air
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