In Focus: A deep dive into the fully immersive creative lifestyle of Anna Condo - ART3.io

Photography in the Metaverse

Photography in the Metaverse

In Focus: A deep dive into the fully immersive creative lifestyle of Anna Condo

Reading Time: 4 minutes
'In Focus' is a feature as part of our educational series to help people understand, embrace and navigate the world of NFTs and blockchain. Check out the growing collection of stories here.

“Bottom line, is when I am not making art, I like to look at art. It is all the same to me, that inner feeling of curiosity and joy, makes me feel incredibly full and alive.

Anna Condo is a filmmaker, photographer & curator, born in Armenia and raised in France. Anna prides herself on her passion for the arts and a love for the natural world’s mysteries. In this interview we discuss Anna’s journey into NFTs and how this informs, or rather doesn’t inform her artistic process.

“Some view the flower as naive. Anna’s work proves the opposite. Her photographs are portraits, imposing respect. The flower is no longer fragile; she is strong. She symbolizes this nature that bends to the elements. A real break in the world in which we live. The flower is a lady first and foremost. A feminist before its time. A cornucopia of culture, stories, and emotions.”

Anna regularly shares NFT curations with the world via her acclaimed and admired Twitter account @a1111ac011d0 which is all part of her drive to fully immerse herself in her passion for creativity. Art isn’t just a practice for Anna, It’s a way of life.

ART3: When did you first learn about NFTs?

AC: Early Spring 2021, I was asked by a group of cypherpunks to collaborate and photograph a series of photographs for a collection called “Tulip 1637,” inspired by the 17th century market bubble tulip mania.  We minted May 2021.

ART3: Thanks to NFTs, many contemporary digital artists in the current market have had the chance to affirm themselves and showcase their works with a wide range of opportunities. Do you think younger generations will be able to do the same with NFTs?

AC: Of course, at times I feel NFTs are the equivalent of YouTube for art, an opportunity for those with talent who would otherwise not have been seen or discovered.  This is a way not only for collectors to discover new talent, but also for more established artists to support newcomers.  This is, I feel, important, because when a good artist embraces a younger fellow, the wheels keep turning.  Art needs to grow and change and not just through the eyes of the establishment but especially other artists.

ART3: As well as being a photographer yourself, You also practice the art of curation. What came first, Photography or curation and how did your journey begin?

AC: I first began taking photographs as a filmmaker on sets of films I acted in or directed.  Since the late 1980s, I continued in every day life.  In 2013, I shifted my focus to flowers.  All the elements were there: color, movement, expression, etc.  Filmmaking is being surrounded with people, various energies and skills.  I wanted to find a more intimate approach to image making, yet continue to work with live creatures.  This makes me smile, because I often find that even inanimate objects feel alive to me, but back to nature, I sense that as humans, we have much more in common with flowers than meets the eye.  So in short, making art came first with painting, drawing, music, dance and acting.  That was my youth and here we are today, with me working at bringing all these together within a single flower.

The journey continues and as a filmmaker who also edits, I feel that curation came naturally.  I also had an art and humanities blog for a while.  I hardly update it now but you can check it out here.

Bottom line, is when I am not making art, I like to look at art.  It is all the same to me, that inner feeling of curiosity and joy, makes me feel incredibly full and alive. 

TULIP 1637, #1 Ⓒ Anna Condo
TULIP 1637, #11 Ⓒ Anna Condo
TULIP 1637, #9 Ⓒ Anna Condo

Does the twitter #NFTPhotography community impact your curatorial vision?

No.  I am always happy to look around and learn and see things.  But I know right away what I like and don’t like.  When I like an artwork, it feels good and when not, it hurts, and no one wants to get hurt, so this is why I also curate my feed as much as possible.  

What the community has brought to me is discovery and I am especially happy to see young artists from all over the world.  I love those open doors and new conversations in art.  I find it is healthy.  As a society, we are also represented by the arts of our times. I like that this is no longer in the hands of only a few gatekeepers.  Less power games and more art.

ART3: Are there any curators who influenced your personal curatorial vision, both from the traditional art world and the Metaverse?

AC: Sorry, but no.  I am certain that my curation is tied to my artist heart and brain, therefore how I see and feel things.  Individuality is most important to me.  That unique voice that is in each and every one of us, that is pure and authentic and that is what art requires first and foremost: authenticity.  I find trends real boring.  Once everyone sees things a certain way, I need to go elsewhere and start on the road of a fresh visual journey.  Art is not only expression but also expansion.

ART3: You often display your NFT curations through twitter, do you feel this platform works well for sharing your curations?

AC: I work with whatever platform I am on at the time.  Right now, it is twitter, but please check also the curation I did for @1stdibsNFT, Flower Gang.

ART3: Do your curations inform your own practice?

AC: Half and half, cause back to individuality and authenticity, I want to do me … but, again that feeling one gets looking at good art, it is nurturing.  So it is this feeling that I value.  As far as inspiration, so many masters in the past and the story continues with us all.

ART3: Twitter allows curators a line of direct communication between themselves and their audience, do you find meaningful conversations come from your posts?

AC: I like to speak in picture, that’s my real POV.  Also, screens are visual supports, so how I like to share, and from what I understand some seem to like these conversations I create between works of art.

ART3: What advice would you offer emerging NFT curators?

AC: Stay curious, generous and try also to get out of your comfort zone.  

 

Find more about Anna Condo and her full portfolio here.

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