For this week’s profile, we bring you Celyne Asnani. Currently a fourth year student at SFU, Celyne has decided to try her hand at starting an artist collective. Enjoy our interview as she shares her inspirations, aspirations and opinions about the art scene in Vancouver.
Basics:
Age: 21
Major: Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies
Social Media: clynaso (Instagram)
Fun Fact: “I’m not fun…”
So what are you up to these days?
Now that the semester’s over and I’m done with all my papers (whew!), I can finally start checking off films and TV shows from my to-watch list – so essentially Netflix and chilling at home all by myself (*cue song*). A few days ago, I walked past the Vancouver Art Gallery and thought about making a really spontaneous visit since I was interested in the Juxtapoz X Superflat exhibition, but the admission cut a little too deep into my budget so I just ended up walking down Robson and through Gastown while freezing my ears off. For the remaining time I’ve got in my break, I’m planning to get some alcohol in my system, to catch up with some friends – especially with dear, dear sleep.
What kind of films/TV shows would we find on your to-watch list?
For films, I’ve been really into ones that would be considered arthouse – mostly what falls under the “Independent” category on Netflix. A few that I’ve watched recently would be Weekend, Sexual Chronicles of a French Family, The Heroes of Evil and Spa Night.
As for TV shows, It’s harder for me to get into just because they require so much effort, keeping up with the plot line episode after episode; the only TV show that I’ve consistently kept up with would be Hannibal. With that said however, I have been watching light shows (while I should’ve been studying for finals). One that I especially liked was the Australian show Please Like Me, which talks about Josh, the protagonist, dealing with his family and his emotions after finding out that he’s gay. Although the show deals with a lot of serious topics such as body issues and mental illnesses, it discusses them in a way that we would in everyday life – without filter and without being politically correct. Overall, this is just a very human show and gave me many great laughs.
I know you’ve considered switching into Cinema studies, what made you want to do it?
I’ve always been really into arts – afterall, I got into SFU under the Theatre program. Even though I decided later on that I don’t really enjoy the performance aspect of art, I did discover through the various film classes that I’ve taken (and I’ve taken a lot of them, which is probably why I’m so behind with my major), that I don’t mind watching and analyzing films at all for school; in fact, I really enjoyed it!
What makes you love film so much?
What I love most abut film is that there are so many ways to tell a story – images are truly worth a thousand words: a film with little to no dialogue is still capable of delivering a captivating story. The more film classes I take, the more I learn from my classmates and they have helped me develop interests in new genres along the way. These days, I’m really into experimental films and foreign films because of how they portray topics differently – they give a broader perspective on topics, rather than just the popular view that is often portrayed in Hollywood and bigger budget films. Sometimes though, if I’m honest, I enjoy these films purely because of their aesthetics, especially those that are not super big on narrative or storytelling. Another big reason why I love film is simply because I watched a lot of film growing up and I just love imagining that I’m in the film itself – it opens up my world so much and once again, helps me see and understand things in different perspectives and live different lives.
Speaking of story-telling, you created the blog xCULTureX, can you tell us a little bit more about it? What inspired you to start this blog?
The blog started as an idea I had one night, when I suddenly had the urge to start an artist collective that includes creative and individual creations which reflect and portray culture through art, and my definition of art includes everything from poetry to dance to videography since I consider all creative expressions art. What motivated me is what I’ve felt about the art scene in Vancouver, that it isn’t accessible to everyone. Like I mentioned earlier, art is expensive and made to feel like a high-brow activity. It also feels like a top-down imposed culture, where museums and art critics decide what’s worth studying, worth appreciating by curating certain works into their prestigious spaces; at least that’s how I was exposed to art, from elementary field trips to the Vancouver Art Gallery for art class to once again going for academic purposes in university for an art history class.
This feeling motivated me to do my part in reclaiming art as a form of expression by commoners for commoners, and that’s where Savage Commonality was born. The name of this artist collective was originally going to be Savage Society (a suggestion by a good friend of mine), but a round of Googling showed that it’s the name of an existing band, and so it was changed to what it is now. The word “savage” here is used in the context of describing something as brutally awesome. Since I wanted the artist collective to be connected with and revitalize the youth movement, it seemed perfect to name it with youth slang and owning it in the best way possible. As for commonality, the word literally means common people, so there’s no word more appropriate to use for this movement reminding everyone that each and every one of us is an artist and deserves to create art.
Once the collective’s been initiated and properly named, I realized I needed a platform to promote it, and what better platform is there to promote a free, accessible, borderless and limitless space than a website? My blog www.xCULTureX.com now features different works from mostly local young artists and explores what culture means to them by looking at how they express through different art forms. The main question that drives this movement is “What is culture and who gets to define it?”
Want to give us a sneak peek of an upcoming feature?
The next feature that I’m working on is of a fellow SFU student Clara Liu and an art installation she did for a project in FPA 460. Her installation, Habit of Reflection, features Qipaos that are ripped apart and sewn together again into a mosaic-like quilt to reflect the displacement of the Asian female identity in Vancouver. It’s a feature that I’m super excited about so keep your eyes peeled for that!
Since you didn’t go into the Art Gallery, what art-related events have you attended lately?
The most recent live show that I attended was the Daughter concert at the Queen Elizabeth theatre. Their live performance was just phenomenal – it was such an emotional night. When you listen to them sing, you can truly feel every word and all the emotions behind them. Their opening act, Vancouver Sleep Clinic, was also just as worth mentioning. Even though it was my first time listening to them, they blew me away and I’ll be sure to check out more of their music from now on!
Any upcoming movies you’re looking forward to?
Star Wars: Rogue One (which is out by the time this is published)!!! Even though I’ve never been a Star Wars fan up to now, having both Donny Yen and Mads Mikkelsen in the same movie is enough to get me super excited!
Thanks for chatting today, Celyne! For those of you who are interested in supporting local artists, and learning more about their pieces, be sure to visit Celyne’s blog.
Photos provided by the interviewee.