Laura Hatting

My preferred artistic medium is …
I work in almost everything. I draw a lot, create objects, and write. Most of the time, the image or object comes with some form of text. I also make music. However, I wouldn’t say these things exist independently of each other; rather, they flow together in some way.

My art in three words…
…lonely and desperate?! 

A recurring theme in my work is...
It changes over time: for a while, I thought it was about disgust, then I thought it was about anger, then about work – and most recently, it’s been about dying. If I had to pinpoint a recurring theme, it would be a sense of alienation from reality – a kind of late-capitalist feeling of existence. The personal theme of disgust runs parallel to that.

I draw inspiration for my art from…
…on one hand, predictable sources of inspiration – I enjoy reading science fiction by female authors, as well as philosophical texts. Before studying art, I also studied creative writing, which explains my interest in narratives. On the other hand, I’m part of a subcultural environment – I listen to metal, and some aesthetic inspirations stem from that. But the actual driving force, the real source of inspiration, comes from encounters with chaos. And by chaos, I don’t mean a creative, cute kind of chaos, but rather destructive chaos – true, devastating loss of human control.

When it comes to materials, it’s important to me that…
Materials are not important to me. I believe the actual artistic decision isn’t about choosing the material but about how you work with it. That’s why I actually value technique more.

My greatest artistic achievement so far...
I find this question difficult because there are different parameters for measuring success. If it’s about money and recognition, then it was definitely my solo exhibition only death is real last October at the Rhizom art association. But I like to follow one of my favorite authors, Ursula K. Le Guin, who said shortly before her death that artists are not only paid in profit but also in the big word "freedom." For me, this also means rejecting offers that don’t align with one’s values.

The feedback that has influenced me the most…
None comes to mind.

If I could give advice to other emerging artists, it would be...
Forget about academic art discourse. This isn’t an endorsement of apolitical work. But I feel that much of what is currently being pushed or imposed isn’t necessarily helpful. At least for me, it was a huge distraction – from finding a language that might even have a chance of being heard.

The transition from studying to artistic independence means to me...
Since I don’t plan to become a full-time artist, I wouldn’t speak of artistic independence. Not much has changed for me – on the contrary, organizing the exhibition at Rhizom independently, for instance, was much easier than completing my degree.

My studio in the Creative Cluster is for me a place where…
Of course, I’m happy about the space, but the way one approaches it feels a bit like the friendships you form during an Erasmus semester: you’re seriously present but know it’s temporary. It’s also an exercise: arranging the space meaningfully with two other people or motivating yourself to go to the studio independently.

An artistic idea or project I look forward to realizing…
I want to write a story. The framework for my exhibition at Rhizom was also a science fiction narrative. In a similar style, I’d like to create a story about a society where everyday life only exists because things and, above all, actions are still conventionally labeled, even though the basis for them no longer actually exists. The idea came to me at work. Right now, I’m still looking for a crucial everyday element that is completely self-evident to us but needs to be removed for the story to work and for the dissonance to emerge. That’s what I’m still searching for.