:: r o a d b u r n s p e c i a l ::
the art of
C o s t i n C h i o r e a n u
by Stefan Raduta
Costin Chioreanu was on fire in 2011. In the last few years the Romanian born artist has been as restless as ever, but this year he definitely made quite an impression.
Staying hungry and foolish, he might as well be called the local scene’s Napoleon. The guy literally does everything. He plays and tours with Mediocracy, has a few side projects like Nightpray (a collaboration with DHG’s Mr. Clandestine), a Black Metal entity named Kandaon, and others are on their way. Under his brand Twilight13Media you find the quintessential multimedia artist who does magazine layouts, builds websites, designs logos, album covers, festival posters and tour posters for some of your favorite bands, shoots, directs and edits music videos. But most importantly he finds time to dream and search for a deeper meaning to everything, and in doing so he’s been creating some really fascinating images. For no other reason than to feed his own dreams and obsessions.
While only in its very beginning, his is a story of incredible success preceded by a very arduous road. Costin Chioreanu understands the real meaning of the word adversity. It’s not easy to be a struggling Artist born in a post-communist country where everything works against you, starting with a society where everything seems to be backwards being the main cause. Over there you have two choices: either run the hell out and not look back, or stay and fight with the ever present ignorance, mediocrity and intolerance. He endures.
Today he does not compromise when it comes to what he lays his hands on anymore, and being true to himself is finally paying off. People are taking notice.
On October 29th his interactive exhibition Where Purgatory Ends was presented in Helsinki. A few days later Costin would fly with his canvases across the Atlantic, bringing his works in New York City, this being his first presence in the US. Over there, he got to meet guitar God Tony Iommi, who believe it or not was releasing his long awaited autobiography Iron Man in the same day and venue, his canvases hosting the event. Nine days later he would be back in Bucharest, his band being direct support for Venom’s first show ever in Romania. Shortly after he'd be in Portugal shooting Ava Inferi's second official video, The Living End (above)
We’re talking about a real metal fan with incredible talent and pretty much living the dream right now.
In 2011, with Where Purgatory Ends and Grishjärta, the Artist took his art to a much higher level and it’s what prompted this story and interview. And I must say, this is a very special piece for me, because his work resonate deeply with me for far too many reasons to mention here.
I am absolutely persuaded that Costin Chioreanu is today one of the most talented young visual artist associated with the underground metal scene. Enjoy!
There’s no text, there is no need for lyrics or words here and that’s because this time we don’t embrace the memories as a fact, we take them as an experience from a space much more wider and complex than what this life can offer. There’s no need of text for that - these works, this whole experience is a platform for you.
W h e r e P u r g a t o r y E n d s
Memories, dreams and utopias on thirteen black canvases
Memories, dreams and utopias on thirteen black canvases
A visualization of the soul’s cosmic quest for self-discovery
Where Purgatory Ends represents an interactive art gallery hosting thirteen large images printed on black canvas, all representing various important moments in the young Artist’s career. Some of these beautiful works are dreams waiting to materialize while others are pure, idealized utopias.
Most are just memories that really needed to be set free. At the core of the exhibition lies The Seeker - a personal visualization of the Soul’s asexuality, a half-male half-female entity, sentient energy questing for self-discovery through universes and life cycles.
The exhibition debuted in Romania’s Alba Iulia medieval fortress, as part of Dark Bombastic Evening (a great new music festival that you’ll read about soon here). Whether home, in Finland or the US, the promoters saw Costin's art as a great visual/audio compliment to what they were doing to begin with. Some photos from NYC below.
Most are just memories that really needed to be set free. At the core of the exhibition lies The Seeker - a personal visualization of the Soul’s asexuality, a half-male half-female entity, sentient energy questing for self-discovery through universes and life cycles.
The exhibition debuted in Romania’s Alba Iulia medieval fortress, as part of Dark Bombastic Evening (a great new music festival that you’ll read about soon here). Whether home, in Finland or the US, the promoters saw Costin's art as a great visual/audio compliment to what they were doing to begin with. Some photos from NYC below.
Where Purgatory Ends is unique because it is itself an experience, it contains its own soundtrack, recorded by Costin himself and Rune Eriksen (of Aura Noir, Ava Inferi, ex-Mayhem). The soundtrack is 22 minutes long and is a dark Avant-Garde synthesis of diverse genres including Dark Ambient, Doom Metal and Black Metal. To experience the music and visuals at its fullest, the visitor would have a sacrament – wine and bird shaped cookies, so the connection between the world on the walls and the guest’s body would be made.
To read more about the concept, view all the artwork, photos from the various incarnations and listen to the entire soundtrack click here.
For art collectors who like what they see and are interested, there is a very limited number of 15-piece sets of 5.5" x 8.5" postcards left over from the NYC exhibition at a very reasonable price. They will never be printed again. Details here.
To read more about the concept, view all the artwork, photos from the various incarnations and listen to the entire soundtrack click here.
For art collectors who like what they see and are interested, there is a very limited number of 15-piece sets of 5.5" x 8.5" postcards left over from the NYC exhibition at a very reasonable price. They will never be printed again. Details here.
G r i s h j ä r t a
enter below..
Grishjärta is a pretty crazy story in itself, and when I heard about this collaboration I couldn’t really believe it. It is the first book of poems (or should I say nightmares) written by none other than Nattramn, the enigmatic, controversial individual behind Sweden’s Silencer.
For those in the know, Silencer’s only album Death Pierce Me is undoubtedly the most suffocating, filled with despair and utterly depressing Black Metal record ever released. It came out ten years ago and nothing really even came close to it, in its madness or form. The press release reads:
With the allegorical title "Grishjärta" or "Pig´s Heart", this book will grant you an opportunity to step inside the doggerwerk of the mind of Nattramn. Read all written material since the last fifteen years and dive into the depths of the more recent material. Subjects drifts from life as a prisoner of your mind - to what true freedom ultimately is and what living life as a non-human truly means.
A pungent odor of decomposing corpses is always close at hand in order to remind you of what, and who you really are.Nattramn writes in a variety of emotions, moods and altered mental states - from intense manic fire to cold apathetic dark waters. Liberating and yet deeply depressive and with a neverending urge to "turn it all off". Read this book as pure poetry or use it for what it is truly intended for: A guideline to reject the human being - invoke the animal and reach the level beyond human!
For those in the know, Silencer’s only album Death Pierce Me is undoubtedly the most suffocating, filled with despair and utterly depressing Black Metal record ever released. It came out ten years ago and nothing really even came close to it, in its madness or form. The press release reads:
With the allegorical title "Grishjärta" or "Pig´s Heart", this book will grant you an opportunity to step inside the doggerwerk of the mind of Nattramn. Read all written material since the last fifteen years and dive into the depths of the more recent material. Subjects drifts from life as a prisoner of your mind - to what true freedom ultimately is and what living life as a non-human truly means.
A pungent odor of decomposing corpses is always close at hand in order to remind you of what, and who you really are.Nattramn writes in a variety of emotions, moods and altered mental states - from intense manic fire to cold apathetic dark waters. Liberating and yet deeply depressive and with a neverending urge to "turn it all off". Read this book as pure poetry or use it for what it is truly intended for: A guideline to reject the human being - invoke the animal and reach the level beyond human!
For the release of Grishjärta, Costin has worked tirelessly with Nattramn, creating ten images that would fit certain poems like a glove. Released in a very limited edition of 200 autographed copies, the book is a very powerful and shocking experience gathering Nattramn’s poetry for the last fifteen years. It sold out in a short time and a new pressing was made in paperback, with three more images made by Costin. For those interested, there are still copies left.
In premiere for this story, both agreed to present three of the images with the poems they reflect. The poems have been translated from their original Swedish version.
The Sleeping God
In the dead
dead of night
even darkness seems bright
and in the shadow
of all the earthly light
I am a different kind of pig
here I sleep
quiet like a mouse
deeper and deeper
meter by meter
all I hear are the mumblings
of a sleeping god...
and the barking of the
God damned dogs of Jerusalem!
Vox Inhumana
Vox Inhumana
The beast suckles
with sharpened tooth
strengthened from the ashes
of my left hand
detached from all ties
stands a ghost
with claws that tear
eyes that haunts
feel my zeal
and the serenity that washes
ooover the mind
I’m burning
deep in memory
you wake up, watches
steps up
spread your wings
open the jaws
Brother let me hear your voice!
screeeam out your voice
is it you or me?
screeeam out your voice
is it you or me?
screeeam out your voice
is it you or me?
Nattramn fly out of my chest
Nattramn come out! Nattramn fly out!
Deteriorations
Oh childhood faith!
ooh childhood faith!
children; stare into the violence of chaos!
in the twinkling of an eye
you became so much older
robbed of everything you once were
and all you would come to be
now you’re a shell
eaten and emptied
hopelessly lost
and thoroughly condemned
* * *
* * *
an interview…
Who is Costin Chioreanu? Where/when was he born and what is he doing on this earth?
I was born on March 13th 1982 in Bucharest, Romania where I also live now. Been trying to find the reason for both my existence and all that surrounds me, visible or invisible…maybe since before I was born.
I was born on March 13th 1982 in Bucharest, Romania where I also live now. Been trying to find the reason for both my existence and all that surrounds me, visible or invisible…maybe since before I was born.
People define you as an Artist. How did you become one? I dare to believe it wasn’t something sudden, like a transformation?
I draw since I was 2-3 years old, but I’ve been dreaming since I was born. There wasn’t a transformation, I’d say it was an evolution process, and the main factors were age and the accumulated experience. Yes I did graduate from the National Art University in Bucharest, that’s where I got my Masters in design. Still I think that my artistic side was influenced much more by what I’ve learned while going through life, rather than the technical information I received in school.
I draw since I was 2-3 years old, but I’ve been dreaming since I was born. There wasn’t a transformation, I’d say it was an evolution process, and the main factors were age and the accumulated experience. Yes I did graduate from the National Art University in Bucharest, that’s where I got my Masters in design. Still I think that my artistic side was influenced much more by what I’ve learned while going through life, rather than the technical information I received in school.
What defines you as an Artist, and what do you think your meaning in this world is, as one? What kind of world do you enter when you make drawings that come from within, rather than designs that are ordered by a customer? Is there a world inside of you that you always retreat in or do you dream of another Universe, another life? Do you think of something real, or do you play with utopias?
First of all I don’t think of myself as an Artist. I don’t like people who are in love with themselves, much like I don’t like people who consider themselves ‘artists’ and do everything according to a recipe. This is how we actually got here today, where the world is over saturated, where there isn’t much individuality left and anyone who is ‘different’ is pushed outside of the larger or smaller circle. I just don’t think - these things come from inside, most dealing with feelings and states of mind, very few have anything to do with something material. In my case at least, nothing is made because I have to finish this or that project. If I think of a person, or an event or a memory, I can either feel sadness, hatred, or happiness. That’s the moment when, without rationalizing, the pencil hits the paper. From that moment on I have to express visually as best as I can what it is that I feel, and how I am bonded with that subject, with that theme. Yes, there is a world within me that I don’t want to standardize or try to explain. I like to let people understand whatever they can from my works, I just create them to set myself free.
First of all I don’t think of myself as an Artist. I don’t like people who are in love with themselves, much like I don’t like people who consider themselves ‘artists’ and do everything according to a recipe. This is how we actually got here today, where the world is over saturated, where there isn’t much individuality left and anyone who is ‘different’ is pushed outside of the larger or smaller circle. I just don’t think - these things come from inside, most dealing with feelings and states of mind, very few have anything to do with something material. In my case at least, nothing is made because I have to finish this or that project. If I think of a person, or an event or a memory, I can either feel sadness, hatred, or happiness. That’s the moment when, without rationalizing, the pencil hits the paper. From that moment on I have to express visually as best as I can what it is that I feel, and how I am bonded with that subject, with that theme. Yes, there is a world within me that I don’t want to standardize or try to explain. I like to let people understand whatever they can from my works, I just create them to set myself free.
You’re a part of the metal scene, which sets you apart from the rest of all contemporary artists. It’s something that will define you until you will die, it’s who you are. What pushed you to listen to this music? What frustrations did it help you deal with, or maybe it made that fire in you burn even stronger? I’m curious to what bands changed you at first.
Metal has indeed had a very important impact in my life, and shaped me into who I am both as a simple member of society, but also on a spiritual level. I don’t really know what pushed me to listen to this music, I just listened to some metal at one point on the radio, I saw a clip with Alice Cooper and Kiss after the 1989 revolution on some VHS tape my neighbors had and I just felt the calling. In my case it wasn’t the entourage, because until the 6th grade I was completely isolated from my school peers. I had no interest in them, I preferred to come home, be by myself and draw all kinds of comics with stories I was making up. I preferred to be in my own world rather than play soccer in the yard. I was starving in school so I could save money and buy bootleg metal tapes from a few street vendors here in Bucharest. Once in 7th grade, I started opening up a bit and got to meet people who were into the same music. Then the tape trading begun basically I just started evolving, not only as a listener but I started my interaction with society, so to speak. Lots of things have happened since then, good an bad. After all these years though, I’ve started going back to the albums that filled my youth with joy, it’s rarely that I find interest in something new, knowing how the metal market works…because it has turned into a market. I’m always open to what’s new and will always be, but I have too many filters that the new music has to pass through in order for it to reach me. I was always a big Metallica fan, then I got into At The Gates, Voivod, Mayhem, Burzum, Bathory and many others. Too many. Still discovering new interesting names here and there, it’s rare but it happens.
Metal has indeed had a very important impact in my life, and shaped me into who I am both as a simple member of society, but also on a spiritual level. I don’t really know what pushed me to listen to this music, I just listened to some metal at one point on the radio, I saw a clip with Alice Cooper and Kiss after the 1989 revolution on some VHS tape my neighbors had and I just felt the calling. In my case it wasn’t the entourage, because until the 6th grade I was completely isolated from my school peers. I had no interest in them, I preferred to come home, be by myself and draw all kinds of comics with stories I was making up. I preferred to be in my own world rather than play soccer in the yard. I was starving in school so I could save money and buy bootleg metal tapes from a few street vendors here in Bucharest. Once in 7th grade, I started opening up a bit and got to meet people who were into the same music. Then the tape trading begun basically I just started evolving, not only as a listener but I started my interaction with society, so to speak. Lots of things have happened since then, good an bad. After all these years though, I’ve started going back to the albums that filled my youth with joy, it’s rarely that I find interest in something new, knowing how the metal market works…because it has turned into a market. I’m always open to what’s new and will always be, but I have too many filters that the new music has to pass through in order for it to reach me. I was always a big Metallica fan, then I got into At The Gates, Voivod, Mayhem, Burzum, Bathory and many others. Too many. Still discovering new interesting names here and there, it’s rare but it happens.
Tell me about the bands you play guitar in. I was seeing you being a part of a black metal project, but you actually play in a punk/hardcore group, and also a grind core one.
My main band is Mediocracy, we already have two albums and have been on two European tours. It’s a metal/punk band and I feel great in it, I have total freedom and we have no restrictions what so ever. I also have a project called Nightpray, which is pretty depressing and claustrophobic, and we were joined by Mr. Clandestine (DHG bass player). We also have two albums released with this band. I play black metal in a band Kandaon, and we’ll have a brand new studio album coming very soon…it’s the first album that I play and record with these guys and it’s been a very interesting experience. As far as black metal is concerned…this style has to have a primordial spiritual component, otherwise it’s of no importance to me. I don’t want to have a black metal band with a certain name, a band that has fans, plays shows. This is not what Black Metal is to me. Black metal for me is what almost died in metal, punk, hardcore and anything else you want: Spirit. Kandaon is an experiment and it depends on the people participating if they’re willing to continue or if I’m gonna grow old and still play in it by myself.
My main band is Mediocracy, we already have two albums and have been on two European tours. It’s a metal/punk band and I feel great in it, I have total freedom and we have no restrictions what so ever. I also have a project called Nightpray, which is pretty depressing and claustrophobic, and we were joined by Mr. Clandestine (DHG bass player). We also have two albums released with this band. I play black metal in a band Kandaon, and we’ll have a brand new studio album coming very soon…it’s the first album that I play and record with these guys and it’s been a very interesting experience. As far as black metal is concerned…this style has to have a primordial spiritual component, otherwise it’s of no importance to me. I don’t want to have a black metal band with a certain name, a band that has fans, plays shows. This is not what Black Metal is to me. Black metal for me is what almost died in metal, punk, hardcore and anything else you want: Spirit. Kandaon is an experiment and it depends on the people participating if they’re willing to continue or if I’m gonna grow old and still play in it by myself.
The soundtrack for Where Purgatory Ends is an example of how low I can go in composing music, and also as atypical and dark I can be when it comes to writing. It’s a good example of black metal that doesn’t fit an exact label.
Cap De Craniu, the grind core band that I used to play in, that’s in the past. It’s been a while since I decided to follow another path. It’s very painful to make certain decisions in life, and when I took a step back and saw everything from a distance, I understood that sincerity is the most beautiful and hardest thing that we are capable of. It just took me to long to understand that, and it affected everyone.
Your brand Twilight13media has been receiving more and more attention in the recent years. It’s just you behind this name, and yet you’ve collaborated with quite a few big names so far…how did everything start?
I drew the first cover artwork for a tape in the 90’s. In the beginning it was the demo tape covers of the bands I was playing in. I was also buying bootleg tapes that had xeroxed covers and they just looked horrible. I ended up being very frustrated and I started drawing my own version of the booklets, just because I wanted to have those tapes as close as possible to the originals. There was only one metal magazine here (Heavy Metal Magazine), and I was just redrawing everything for myself. That’s how it started. In college, in between 2001-2002 I got deeper into drawing, that’s when I did my first official cover ever. Things started moving a bit, in the beginning I was happy to work with anyone. I’ve become much more selective since then, and to be honest, today I don’t want this brand to be seen as a classic studio design. In the last years I’ve been somewhat disappointed by my interactions with people needing my services, so I decided to be more cautious. It’s hard to exist on that very thin edge between passion and industry, considering that work with people from both sides. Having a day job that I pay my bills with, I can actually choose who I want to collaborate with when I design. Very soon there will be cleaning period so to speak, both in my personal life but also when it comes to past collaborations.
I drew the first cover artwork for a tape in the 90’s. In the beginning it was the demo tape covers of the bands I was playing in. I was also buying bootleg tapes that had xeroxed covers and they just looked horrible. I ended up being very frustrated and I started drawing my own version of the booklets, just because I wanted to have those tapes as close as possible to the originals. There was only one metal magazine here (Heavy Metal Magazine), and I was just redrawing everything for myself. That’s how it started. In college, in between 2001-2002 I got deeper into drawing, that’s when I did my first official cover ever. Things started moving a bit, in the beginning I was happy to work with anyone. I’ve become much more selective since then, and to be honest, today I don’t want this brand to be seen as a classic studio design. In the last years I’ve been somewhat disappointed by my interactions with people needing my services, so I decided to be more cautious. It’s hard to exist on that very thin edge between passion and industry, considering that work with people from both sides. Having a day job that I pay my bills with, I can actually choose who I want to collaborate with when I design. Very soon there will be cleaning period so to speak, both in my personal life but also when it comes to past collaborations.
What would you say are your most favorite works so far? What do you hold to be really special?
I think the drawings I made for Nattramn’s monumental book Grishjarta are by far the most important works in my portfolio, from all points of view. Until this interview no one saw these things unless they bought the book, which is why I have to thank you for only revealing three of them. There’s way more than what meets the eye here.
I’m very fond of course of the work I did for Darkthrone, Aura Noir, Ava Inferi, Ulver, Hexvessel, The Konsortium and many others. If I was to categorize them from a sentimental point of view, I’d say the drawings fom the Grishjarta book and maybe Extinction Algorithm or Nightpray are by far the most consistent.
I think the drawings I made for Nattramn’s monumental book Grishjarta are by far the most important works in my portfolio, from all points of view. Until this interview no one saw these things unless they bought the book, which is why I have to thank you for only revealing three of them. There’s way more than what meets the eye here.
I’m very fond of course of the work I did for Darkthrone, Aura Noir, Ava Inferi, Ulver, Hexvessel, The Konsortium and many others. If I was to categorize them from a sentimental point of view, I’d say the drawings fom the Grishjarta book and maybe Extinction Algorithm or Nightpray are by far the most consistent.
How important is it for you to do a design for a band you already love or that really means the world to you? Do you give yourself more, is there a form of gratitude in your work?
Working for a band that I love means the world to me, it’s a total experience really. Thinking how much I’ve dug with my heart and soul into a band that I love, of course the result will be superior, because I know that group, I know their music maybe even better than the members themselves. I know it in my spiritual inner self, some of the bands I have worked with shaped me into who I am today, and so yes, it is indeed a privilege to pay homage to them and give something back.
Working for a band that I love means the world to me, it’s a total experience really. Thinking how much I’ve dug with my heart and soul into a band that I love, of course the result will be superior, because I know that group, I know their music maybe even better than the members themselves. I know it in my spiritual inner self, some of the bands I have worked with shaped me into who I am today, and so yes, it is indeed a privilege to pay homage to them and give something back.
How much do you pay attention to what's happening around you, in Romania? As someone who lived there two thirds of his life, I know that it means you deal sometimes with a lot of frustrations. There are also very positive, beautiful things about life there but generally they have to do with nature and the simplicity of the country side, shepherds, rivers and forests etc, and less with the common folk. An objective view from outside is that not all people are ignorant and spiteful, many are genuinely good and intelligent. However they can’t be seen due to the masses of mediocrity, ignorance . It’s a land of incredible contrasts, even geographically - when you cross the Carpathians people change. What's your view?
The more I think about it I realize that I live in my own world so much that I’m not even aware that I actually live here. I don’t watch TV, I don’t read newspapers, printed or online. The result? I’ll give you an example, sometimes some sort of known figure dies and everyone from work or friends feel sorry for that person passing on, and my question more often than not is “Who the hell was that person? I never heard of them..” I couldn’t care less about celebrities fabricated by media, economy or society. I just don’t care. I don’t even know who the mayor of Bucharest is, nor do I have interest in knowing.
The more I think about it I realize that I live in my own world so much that I’m not even aware that I actually live here. I don’t watch TV, I don’t read newspapers, printed or online. The result? I’ll give you an example, sometimes some sort of known figure dies and everyone from work or friends feel sorry for that person passing on, and my question more often than not is “Who the hell was that person? I never heard of them..” I couldn’t care less about celebrities fabricated by media, economy or society. I just don’t care. I don’t even know who the mayor of Bucharest is, nor do I have interest in knowing.
As for living here, what could I possibly tell you? I feel like I am home and I also feel that this is not my home. There is so much despair and frustration that at a certain point I no longer want to be understanding with these things. I can’t get to the point where I have to be tolerant with people’s questionable actions and ways of thinking just because they had a hard life and went through communism. I’ve been through a lot of turmoil as well but my actions towards society do not reflect that, so why should I be understanding of others? As a youth I grew up oscillating between a happy child at my grand parent’s surreal, dream-like countryside at the bottom the mountains, and the poor child from the suburbs of a big city. I also grew up in communism, among gypsies, ex-cons, drug addicts. And yet I am not a jerk or an ignorant prick like many are. Instead I withdrew in reading, in drawing, in judging the world from a different perspective, not only from the perspective of a hungry animal who is obsessed with materialism and thinks only of what can be touched or eaten. And there are so many others like me who suffer because of this, and they choose to leave. And over there they suffer even more because they find other such animals who got there before them, so before they get a chance to settle and prove themselves, they find a very negative bias against them. And they fight an even bigger demon there, they fight the prejudice of the locals about this nation, when in reality they are totally normal people, with talent, big hearts, educated, compassionate, helpful. Of course I am ashamed when people from abroad or my own clients, when they get in touch with me and we start talking about this and that, at one point they tell me about ‘my countrymen’ who are in their towns stealing or begging. Of course it’s something that drives me crazy, especially since most of them don’t even belong to this nation, they’re gypsies who because of our hospitality as a nation (which defies stupidity), settled here centuries ago, took our name, and now carry it through the mud. How can you explain this to someone who looks into their ID, or passport, and it says Romanian citizenship? They are technically Romanians, right? They are now a part of this nation, and as long as this state is assuming responsibility for them and their actions, what the hell can you do or who can you cry to? And there’s also others who are not necessarily gypsies but do the same thing.
In conclusion: yes I come from an incredibly beautiful country who exported not only scum, but also people of value.
Honestly though, mankind doesn’t matter to me that much. What matters to me is that place at the bottom of the mountains where I grew up, that ultimate refuge from everything and all. That’s where I am at peace and in my own Universe. And I know that nowhere else in the world will I discover a place such as that, so filled with positive energy and spirituality. Everything there is a powerful experience – even that small delicate tree branch, the wind, the water stream, anything that actually means something.
My presence here is without my will…I try to report everything to the spiritual level, and that’s very hard because I am surrounded by people who forget that they are “in a body”, and they confuse their existence with the existence of the body they’re in, the color or shape it’s in. I try to stay away as much as I can from these issues.
Romania is such a beautiful country, and for those who come visit it seems even more enchanting than to those who actually live here. They seem to treasure it more. I see that, and the number of tourists has grown a lot in the last years.
Tell me everything about Where Purgatory Ends. I know that its debut this year in Alba Iulia was a pivotal moment for you in your life...why is that? Where did you get the impulse to do these works? Were these thirteen images something that you had in your mind overtime, or did you just decide one day to start this series?
Where Purgatory Ends is a story materialized in thirteen graphic works and a twenty-five minute soundtrack. Both parts make the whole, and the main subject is my vision of life and death, which is there for the viewer to see. The point of this project is for people to discover the pure spirituality from behind the works and music. It’s also a reminder for them that they’re more than just mere bodies of flesh in motion destined to fight themselves fiercely for affirmation in society. I guess I want people to search for that immense power they carry within themselves, that power which lies locked in and is never discovered most of the time. It’s about individualism and the need for spiritual progress. The impulse for creating these works exists since I was born, because I grew up surrounded by hypocrites and people who were dead spiritually. It took me years to really understand what bothers me about these people, what the reason to these anomalies is and ultimately what the secret to spark something in them is, if that key is not completely buried. Collaborating with Rune Eriksen (Aura Noir, Ava Inferi, ex-Mayhem) made me very happy, because I really wanted this music not to sound like a one man band. To me he’s the most interesting composer in the last 10-15 years, so his presence on this disc really took everything towards perfection for me. Andrei (bass) and Tudor (violin) were the only two who could have completed the line-up, from all aspects. Even now, after listening to this thing we recorded, I am so proud that we managed to leave behind something that is really beautiful and daring.
Where Purgatory Ends is a story materialized in thirteen graphic works and a twenty-five minute soundtrack. Both parts make the whole, and the main subject is my vision of life and death, which is there for the viewer to see. The point of this project is for people to discover the pure spirituality from behind the works and music. It’s also a reminder for them that they’re more than just mere bodies of flesh in motion destined to fight themselves fiercely for affirmation in society. I guess I want people to search for that immense power they carry within themselves, that power which lies locked in and is never discovered most of the time. It’s about individualism and the need for spiritual progress. The impulse for creating these works exists since I was born, because I grew up surrounded by hypocrites and people who were dead spiritually. It took me years to really understand what bothers me about these people, what the reason to these anomalies is and ultimately what the secret to spark something in them is, if that key is not completely buried. Collaborating with Rune Eriksen (Aura Noir, Ava Inferi, ex-Mayhem) made me very happy, because I really wanted this music not to sound like a one man band. To me he’s the most interesting composer in the last 10-15 years, so his presence on this disc really took everything towards perfection for me. Andrei (bass) and Tudor (violin) were the only two who could have completed the line-up, from all aspects. Even now, after listening to this thing we recorded, I am so proud that we managed to leave behind something that is really beautiful and daring.
The third part of the exhibition was these cookies made in the shape of birds, copied from the ones present in the drawings. The shape was put together by sculptor Claudiu Chiaescu, and in Romania my grandmother actually baked them. The cookies are there to provide subtle way for the viewer and listener to communicate with the works on the wall, it’s basically a sacrament.
You, the visitor, view these “icons”, listen to the music, drink the wine and take a bite out of the birds you see on the walls, this way your body connects with the story. It’s the connection between body and mind and what you see on the walls and hear that the whole experience strives for. The birds themselves are gatherers of dream and spirit, and represent the union that Where Purgatory Ends strives for, facilitating the soul’s recollection.
There’s no text, there is no need for lyrics or words here and that’s because this time we don’t embrace the memories as a fact, we take them as an experience from a space much more wider and complex than what this life can offer. There’s no need of text for that - these works, this whole experience is a platform for you.
I see some elements in these works that seem to repeat themselves throughout Where Purgatory Ends. Birds, eyes, human shapes, shadows, fish. I guess everything is up for interpretation for the viewer, but what do they mean?
There are a lot of people asking about the meaning of these symbols. If I feel the need to put something in a certain place to express what I need in that work, and if I fee that this is what’s needed in order for the message to be complete and have weight, then I will use it. There are things that I don’t even ‘discuss’ with myself, when my soul is drawing. I love birds, and find them fascinating, I think they are the perfect image to reflect certain states of the spirit. The eyes can see, they are the witness, important factors to understanding and evolution.
What do you plan for the future?
Considering my plans for the future, I don’t know what will happen. There are some ideas starting to take shape, but everything is kind of blurry right now and I don’t know how they will materialize. I don’t know what the future will hold and right now that’s the best possible thing.
Considering my plans for the future, I don’t know what will happen. There are some ideas starting to take shape, but everything is kind of blurry right now and I don’t know how they will materialize. I don’t know what the future will hold and right now that’s the best possible thing.
You said that each of these works has a big importance for you. Are some experiences from your past and other, visions from your future? Can you tell me about some of the stories behind them?
All these works are based on experiences and signs I’ve come across in life. Each drawing in itself carries a lot of names, so many I could not name them all. In many ways, these names change with every visitor that sees the exhibition. So, analyzing this concept that is based on the need to remind people about the existence of spirituality, I’d like to let the visitors become the explorers of this world and find the answers that are in perfect harmony with their truths. Speaking to people in both Helsinki and New York City about some of these works, I realized that myself, as their creator, keep finding new ways of expressing better what’s happening there inside them.
All these works are based on experiences and signs I’ve come across in life. Each drawing in itself carries a lot of names, so many I could not name them all. In many ways, these names change with every visitor that sees the exhibition. So, analyzing this concept that is based on the need to remind people about the existence of spirituality, I’d like to let the visitors become the explorers of this world and find the answers that are in perfect harmony with their truths. Speaking to people in both Helsinki and New York City about some of these works, I realized that myself, as their creator, keep finding new ways of expressing better what’s happening there inside them.
I detect a big shade of sensibility in these creations. Are you a romantic? I’m asking because I find some of these images to be very touching. How do you define yourself, as a human being? Is there ever a time when you draw something so intense that you may even shed a tear or two?
Yes I will admit that I did shed a few tears while I was drawing some of these works of Where Purgatory Ends. It also happened when Rune Eriksen sent me the first track of the soundtrack…I will never forget that moment, I was waiting and waiting and there were no new layers. The track was approaching the end and just when I thought I hit play to an older version, I had this great revelation, which stopped right in my heart and came out of the speakers. I thought I saw an angel then. Working on Grishjarta and the works of Where Purgatory Ends I discovered many, many things that were buried deep inside me and I had to idea they existed.
Yes I will admit that I did shed a few tears while I was drawing some of these works of Where Purgatory Ends. It also happened when Rune Eriksen sent me the first track of the soundtrack…I will never forget that moment, I was waiting and waiting and there were no new layers. The track was approaching the end and just when I thought I hit play to an older version, I had this great revelation, which stopped right in my heart and came out of the speakers. I thought I saw an angel then. Working on Grishjarta and the works of Where Purgatory Ends I discovered many, many things that were buried deep inside me and I had to idea they existed.
Tell me about your role in Grishjarta. How did you, of all people ended up working with this mysterious character named Nattramn? What’s this book about? Death Pierce Me is easily one of the most depressing Black Metal recordings of all time…what did this project mean to you?
In the most serious meaning of the word, Nattramn is indeed a true artist and this collaboration opened my mind and so many horizons. I see him as a prophet at times. Speaking to him about this project I realized what an amazing thing we were accomplishing and struggling for. It’s really shocking to me to discover after ten years, that this artist knew from the very beginning what he wanted to express, and what kind of dialogue would fit him best, since then. Only now that my work with Grishjarta is complete do I understand the true meaning of Death Pierce Me and Transformalin. Because it was released all these years back, Death Pierce Me is so truly high up there, that I don’t think most people really understand it, after a decade. It’s simply inhuman, in the most profound and beautiful sense of the word. Grishjarta is an idea that evolves…many people who bought the book didn’t go as far with the idea as they could have. But at least there is a question that is born in them and that, you can see in they eyes…most were predisposed, so everything happens according to plan.
Grishjarta was for me a spiritual revolution like no other.
Mankind…people are empty, they’re made of flesh and they bathe in shit, and they’re ever insatiable even for the smallest piece of spirituality. In my view, this book offers you a spiritual revolution, as long as you are willing to escape the mental comfort offered by the pleasant yet confused reality of being one and the same with your body. Many can’t get past this truth and read this book as a collection of poems, but it’s so much more than that.
Regarding the drawings, I have agreed with Nattramn to present here three out of the thirteen drawings presented in the first edition. The second edition of the book contains sixteen drawings. They were all made for certain poems that really resonated with me. They are my interpretation of these visions, memories and experiences, so all I had to do is just start drawing.
You once told me that if you could, you’d move to Norway and open a design studio there. What is it about Norway that fascinates you?
It’s not only Norway that fascinates me, but Scandinavia as a whole. I grew up with their music so of course I am fascinated by it, like I was saying earlier I wasn’t a very sociable youth growing up so I had plenty of time to really digest that music. What I find fascinating about Scandinavian music is how they managed to maintain that special ‘isolated wooden cabin’ feeling, despite the fact that they do pretty well financially. It’s like they really wanted to preserve that feeling, and they managed to. This is what I really like. And also the fact that the people living there inspire individuality, people who stick with themselves and care less about the rest. This lack of dependency on others and affiliation with solitude, with introspection, I can connect with that. And the music is clearly a reflection of that.
Your favorite painters today? What do you think about Beskinski? I find his works incredible…
I’m not too much into the classics, I have interest in certain modern ones. Beskinski is indeed unique, a real genius, so underrated. Death and darkness really scare the masses away apparently. I like Magritte. He’s the closest one to my hallucinations.
I’m not too much into the classics, I have interest in certain modern ones. Beskinski is indeed unique, a real genius, so underrated. Death and darkness really scare the masses away apparently. I like Magritte. He’s the closest one to my hallucinations.
What albums would you take to the other side if you were to choose?
I don’t see the sense of human made music on “the other side”. Most of all the music made by man is far too primitive and far too much contaminated by the egos of its creators. I definitely love bands like Voivod, Deathspell Omega, Smohalla, Valborg, Solefald, Virus, Code, Ulver, Hexvessel, Terra Tenebrosa, Oranssi Pazuzu, Monumentum. However, if I was to die today I would really try to carry with me certain albums that changed me. Burzum’s Hvis Lyset Tar Oss, Bathory’s Twilight Of The Gods, At The Gates’ Slaughter Of The Soul Mayhem’s Ordo Ad Chao and Silencer’s - Death Pierce Me.
Nice picks. Why?
Filosofem because it’s the most beautiful album I could listen to while I’m in the woods. It’s so special, it becomes the space it defines.
Twilight Of The Gods because it’s the purest album in metal by which man tried to get close to mythology.
Slaughter Of The Soul because it’s an album about the end of everything and change, and these musicians were capable so many years ago to anticipate the spiritual death some of their more sensible fans are becoming aware of. It is in my opinion the purest, most dramatically real metal album ever
Ordo Ad Chao because it’s the highest point in Black Metal ever achieved, since its inception or discovery. I’m convinced it’s the most refined and brilliant work in this genre. And after that it was followed by nothing but commerce, chaos and fakeness.
Death, Pierce Me because of two great reasons: Firstly – although it came out over a decade ago, it deals with issues that only some of the most spiritually driven people have realized today. It’s a really dark and yet essential debate concerning spirit and human nature. And secondly, from its concept to the sound, it’s the saddest, most filled with despair record ever released. And as a bonus, while it pretty much became the birth of a subgenre of Black Metal, in ten years nobody could release anything more powerful more overwhelming.
I am fascinated by people that are extremely talented, people who due to a very sensible side manage to capture in music vital issues or aspects of spirituality. And when an album of such caliber needs to be born, that man will have by his side the right people, atmosphere and circumstances, so that the record will become a masterpiece. It’s interesting to see that besides Quorthon, all the other musicians responsible for these works are alive, active and keep releasing amazing things, whether records or books, that more often than not can not penetrate through the wall that separates us from the commercial, consumerism world so many people without direction or purpose have fallen pray to. Search and you will find. Start with an album called Onyx.
Your views on divinity, God, religion? Do you believe in reincarnation? I am a bit confused because I read somewhere that you’re an atheist but the theme of Where Purgatory Ends suggests otherwise.
I think it’s pretty obvious that the story of Where Purgatory Ends takes place in the absence of God. At least visually. The seeker goes through multiple lives, walks between being and un-being until it will become complete, so its becoming will ultimately reach a conclusion, an end. I don’t know what that will feel like, since I am here now. This God entity that man writes with capitals for fear he will not be punished is just a creation made to resemble man’s shape and features, not the other way around. And what you see in ‘the seeker’ from Where Purgatory Ends is nothing more but a shape, it’s not the essence. It’s a shape. Do not confuse appearances with what the essence is. Don’t confuse flesh with spirit, or the other way around. Don’t confuse man’s God with what you can’t find drawn in books or explained anywhere else. So I really didn’t lie, maybe I’m an atheist to humans. Maybe God in Where Purgatory Ends is Everything, that’s why you can’t see Him. Or maybe He just doesn’t exist at all. Look deeper, search!
I think it’s pretty obvious that the story of Where Purgatory Ends takes place in the absence of God. At least visually. The seeker goes through multiple lives, walks between being and un-being until it will become complete, so its becoming will ultimately reach a conclusion, an end. I don’t know what that will feel like, since I am here now. This God entity that man writes with capitals for fear he will not be punished is just a creation made to resemble man’s shape and features, not the other way around. And what you see in ‘the seeker’ from Where Purgatory Ends is nothing more but a shape, it’s not the essence. It’s a shape. Do not confuse appearances with what the essence is. Don’t confuse flesh with spirit, or the other way around. Don’t confuse man’s God with what you can’t find drawn in books or explained anywhere else. So I really didn’t lie, maybe I’m an atheist to humans. Maybe God in Where Purgatory Ends is Everything, that’s why you can’t see Him. Or maybe He just doesn’t exist at all. Look deeper, search!
Suppose you had to make the most important artwork in your life…what medium would you choose? A drawing, a painting, a photograph, a song, a video?
This question is so simple and yet so complex. The answer is: no matter the medium, I would chose to illustrate something that cannot be.
This question is so simple and yet so complex. The answer is: no matter the medium, I would chose to illustrate something that cannot be.
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