Sebastian Buescher
Statement
What inspires your work?
I would say that the primary reason I make my work is because it engages me in a state of pure creativity. This state is a very pleasurable state that allows me to travel far from the mundane, serious everyday world into a world where anything is possible and nothing has to make sense. I like to imagine that what I make is a form of complete, unnecessary nonsense. My jewellery is not made to be worn and things are taken out of their traditional environment and placed in a surreal and absurd landscape. Often times these pieces exhibit irony and contradiction, resulting in work that tests humour and allows the mind of the viewer to make invisible connections, primarily through the recognition of common and everyday elements.
What sort of materials do you use and why? Do you follow any particular concept?
More recently I have been drawn to second hand materials, lost memories, history and death. There is something about the past that intrigues me completely, a fascination verging almost on obsession. It is not about knowing what happened, but more about the past being so far away and utterly unreachable. I also think that there is a great sadness in the past, not necessarily one based on bad memories, but on the simple fact that the past is buried somewhere within us, coated with numerous layers of experience. These concepts and ideas were explored in my most recent collection, entitled White Limbo. White Limbo is my imaginary place for lost or forgotten things.
There also appears to be a formula in my work. Recently I have come to the conclusion that there are three main ingredients to my work, namely experimentation, material and history. They are all linked and cover common ground, but can also exist separately. Experimentation allows me to play with a material, technique or idea. This act of playing explores possibilities and opportunities. The material can be part of the experimentation, but is also something I hunt for on a regular basis, whether in antique markets, supermarkets, ebay, rivers or forests. Sometimes the material, or object, is complete and I have to do nothing more than use it as it is. Other instances make me dissect the object, looking for something I haven't seen or something that feels meaningful. A lot of these objects are about history, in other words time and experience. Things from the river have been tumbled and washed for maybe a thousand years, trees have grown over centuries and second hand materials have been used, perhaps stolen, lost or given away. This formula is then applied to my ideas and somehow come together as a piece.
Do you plan your pieces beforehand or is yours a more instinctive type of work?
I do not really plan my pieces, they tend to just happen. I start with an initial idea, like a blur. As I progress, I look at what excites me and what doesn't. I do not wish to spend my time being bored, I can do that whenever I want. I want to feel a fire within me, pleasure rushing through my veins and anticipation to work. I want to look at the finished piece and be inspired and moved to create more. I can get stuck, I can get bored with a piece and as an artist, I will never be able to see what I am really making, as other people are. What I do know, however, is that this work is my life. It has moved from a hobby to become my livelihood, my passion, my dreams and my desires and this is something I will continue for as long as I will live.