10 Questions with Moti Bazak

Artist Moti Bazak makes use of recycled materials to create thought-provoking, often abstract images inspired by the existential aspects of modern life. Moti has started off with sculpture and wall art, currently embracing traditional photography and digital art. Born in the former Soviet Union, Moti grew up in Israel, where he first began developing his self-taught style. Since then, he has won several awards and had his work exhibited all over the world.

motibazak.com | @moti_bazak

ARTIST STATEMENT

FROM BROKEN TO BEAUTIFUL

I was still a child when I had the realization that things are broken, and that they need fixing. Years later, I am returning to that “need of fixing” in my creation; I am collecting abandoned and forgotten pieces of scrap. Their individual colors, textures, and bruises whisper the stories about their past life. When the moment is just right, these different pieces become displaced and coalesce into a work of art. This process of fixing and reviving has a comforting effect on me, a sense of which I am trying to pass on in my art.

INTERVIEW

First of all, tell us about your background. When did you start getting involved with visual arts and how?

Well, I started off with art pretty late in my life; I guess I had that "immigrant" based need to secure myself financially. 

I think I have had that special way of looking at things throughout my whole life. But the final push towards the actual practice of art was the time spent with my kids. I was working with them on various artistic projects, and used to stay and work long after they got tired and disappeared. This experience has connected me back to the magic feelings associated with art and creativity.

You were born in Russia, but grew up and started working as an artist in Israel. How did these two countries influence your work?

Well, yes. I was born in a Russian-led empire (the USSR). While I have many things to say about growing up as a child behind the iron curtain, in a Jewish family; and for sure many things to say also about growing up as a youngster to an immigrant family in Israel of the seventies, I would say that the immigration experience itself has left the deepest emotional trace. The change in the world around me, the different languages, the different way I saw my parents, etc.

How would you define yourself as an artist nowadays and what is your personal aim?

The atmosphere is full of different narratives. My effort is very modest in all this - Try and capture true moments; Moments of beauty, and truth. And if possible, to pass them along in my art.

In your biography, you mention working with sculpture and wall art and "currently embracing traditional photography and digital art". How do you choose the mediums you work with?

It is really more like a process and can be seen more as a continuum of creation. First comes the "fixing process" whereby I restore my childhood revelation of fixing the world from found/old objects.

Then after this, those objects take a tour in different locations. 

I take a photographer and sometimes a model with me. We work to document different installation settings, usually outdoors; this is meant to unveil more aspects and angles of our reality. 

And, hopefully, this is not stopping here. I am still planning to move ahead on this creative continuum towards different art mediums.

In your works you use discarded objects that you reassemble into works of art. How did you come up with this concept?

On the one hand, this really has to do with childhood experiences. It was the mix of feelings about the "real nature of things" communicated to me as a child - and the joy that I have experienced - finding "real objects" and mending them in my own way, by which way I have relieved my inner tension towards that reality.

On the more recent side of things, when I was not practicing art on a daily basis, I saw the beauty in different discarded stories, and I used to keep them in the warehouse until such time when the storage room could not contain the vast array of stories any longer.

What was the most challenging part of your project?

I would say it is the logistic part of this activity, i.e., storing all the parts and pieces and finding them when the time comes.

What is your creative process like?

In my case, usually, the pieces are "talking to me" with their individual stories, and it is as if they are asking to become a piece of art. This part of the idea stays in my mind for a while. The incubation phase can last a few days but can also be a few months or years. This time is really when my mind is cooking the external input with my internal ingredients and planning the "stew". This includes technical issues and solutions as well as aesthetic choices like colors and finishing. 

The performance itself has its own challenges and can take a while before it takes a final form. This is why I usually work on multiple projects simultaneously—each project with its specific pace and stage in my process.

Do you find that the shift to digital exhibitions and art fairs has helped you promote your work?

Yes, I actually started my artistic life when this world already existed. It enables me to create online visibility more easily, especially when considering that my art is sometimes made of heavy pieces of wood that demand costly and cumbersome physical delivery efforts. 

What do you think about the art community and market?

I have really not much to say except that I have been lucky enough to get noticed pretty widely, including sales across different markets.

Finally, any projects you are looking forward to for this year?

Wow… Plans are endless. For this year, I hope to be able to finish some more works, participate in a few more shows and start working on my video art ideas.