Interview with Ivan Suvanjieff
Biography: Ivan Suvanjieff is a painter. He lives and paints on the Costa Brava, Spain. His newest Solo Exhibition, "Quanta Dada Vancouver", is being held in Vancouver, Canada in February and March of 2025. Suvanjieff’s passion for social activism and free expression is evident in his diverse body of work. This commitment spans across multiple mediums, from his days as the lead singer of punk rock bands The Ramods and The 27 to his role as associate editor of CREEM magazine. His writing is featured in “The Stooges: The Authorized Story"and he published over 50 issues of “The New Censorship: Monthly Journal of the Next Savage State.” The New Censorship published Charles Bukowski, Anne Waldman, Kathy Acker, and more. He co-founded the PeaceJam Foundation and worked for 30 years with leading Nobel Peace Prize winners around the world. His influence also extends into the world of film; his most recent film, “Shirin Ebadi: Until We Are Free,” was recently broadcast on BBC.
Artist's Statement: I created my artistic series, "Quanta Dada", to express my disgust with what is happening in the world today. I am drawn to the Dada movement of 1916-1923, because it was a powerful reaction to World War I by artists who believed that war itself is craziness incarnate. Dada artists used humor and absurdity to hold up a mirror to the absurdity of the world around them. Today, we find ourselves back where we were 100 years ago -- only now, we have the ability to destroy humanity many times over, with weapons much more powerful than before. In this era of crushing autocracy, global greed, and a world on the brink of destruction, I believe it is time for a new Dadaism which can shock us back to our senses. It is time for Quanta Dada.
The Quanta Dada series is positioned as a revival of Dadaism for today's societal challenges. Can you discuss the specific aspects of the original Dada movement that you find most relevant today and how you've adapted these elements in your work to address contemporary issues?
The original Dada movement was a powerful reaction to the insanity of World War I. It was an artisitc jolt. Dada artists embraced chaos and irrationality. They exhibited the absurd. My Quanta Dada series also embraces chaos, irrationality, and the absurd. You can see it in my paintings, with their irreverence and humor, and also in my titles ("I Have Become a Windbreaker", "Wings Over Moscow", "Slippers Are Not Percussion Instruments").
My newest Solo Exhibition (Quanta Dada Vancouver) was created in a world that is, once again, consumed by war. The Dada response to life is to embrace the personal and passionate madness of it all, with the intensity of one's personality transposed directly into a work of art. Art goes straight to the soul. It can shake us out of our conformist stupor. The Quanta Dada series is my way of capturing the interplay of both the light and the dark, la danse de la mort, at this inflection point in human history.
Living at the juncture of the Pyrenees and the Mediterranean, in an area once frequented by artistic giants like Duchamp and Dali, how do you think this historic and vibrant locale influences the thematic and aesthetic dimensions of Quanta Dada?
I live and paint on the Costa Brava, on the same coastline that inspired Dali, Duchamp, Matisse and many others. Picasso also painted here early in his career, and for good reason. As Matisse explained, “The light here is different.” He painted in Collioure, 24 miles north of my house, across the border into France. This coastline is the only Eastern facing one in all of France, and he said it had a light that eradicates shadows. The reflections of the Mediterranean sea, the interplay of light and shadow, the vivid hues that soak the village streets -- all of these things definitely influence the thematic and aesthetic dimensions of Quanta Dada.
You begin your painting sessions with what you describe as a form of 'focused meditation.' How does this process influence the development of your artwork, particularly in the context of the spontaneous and often chaotic nature of Dadaism?
My painting is indeed spontaneous. I never start with a sketch. I start to paint on a blank white canvas, primed with several layers of white gesso. And then shape, form, and movement starts to emerge. I am so focused that I don't notice the noise of life passing by on the village street that runs next to my studio. What I am trying to capture is the mood or energy that I find in myself at that moment.
With a background as varied as punk music and literary editing, how do these experiences converge in your visual art, and specifically, how have they shaped the development of the Quanta Dada series?
Each form of expression definitely informs the others. It happens mainly because of the people you get close to. Being pen pals with the writer Charles Bukowski encouraged me to embrace the chaos and madness of life. Being friends with author Lucia Berlin inspired me to always keep a sense of humor and a bit of an edge in my work.
Your work is known for its vivid emotional intensity. What emotions do you aim to evoke in viewers with your Quanta Dada pieces, and how do you sculpt these emotions through your choice of colors and forms?
For twelve years, I painted only in black and white, in order to learn more about color. It was a difficult challenge, my black and white period, and I became a better painter as a result. I came to love the symphonies of black, white and grey, the clash of opposites and very importantly the negative space.
In my Quanta Dada series, I am capturing the vibrant and brilliant colors of the place where I live now. It is a bit of Eden. The fruit trees, bushes and plants are in bloom all year long here, and the Mediterranean sea changes color from one day to the next. I am constantly inspired. I mix my own colors.
How do personal narratives intersect with public or global narratives in your work? Can you share how personal experiences have informed your depiction of broader societal issues in Quanta Dada?
The personal experiences that inform my depiction of societal issues came mainly from my work with Desmond Tutu of South Africa, Rigoberta Menchu of Guatemala, and other Nobel Peace Laureates. I had the opportunity to see the world through their eyes, for almost thirty years. It shaped me, and it changed me. Their influence makes it impossible for me to sit by silently right now.
Is there anything else that you would like to add?
My guiding star has always been "How to Proceed in the Arts", written by poet Frank O'Hara and painter Larry Rivers. I embraced Motherwell's lovely advice to "Just shut up and paint the pictures."
Or, as Henry Miller once said, "Paint as you like and die happy."
"What's it going to be then, eh?" said Alex.
