Paul Sika
Paul Sika‘s work is something you can’t not notice. If there is one aspect about African life that I love, it’s the abundance of colour everywhere from the houses, to the land and the clothes people wear. Paul makes this an important aspect of his work.
Who are you, where are you based? Give us a bit of background to the person that is Paul Sika
I am Paul Sika and I am the 23 year old Andy Warhol’s grandson. I am also the guy who could have had a very secure job and life as a
pharmacist/chemist because a chemist shop was waiting for him but chose to make video games to in the end fall in love with the potential of cinema
and photography.
In the process of exploring photography, I realized I was in fact a creative director who happens to take photos.
I am a Software Engineer graduate from the University of Westminster, London, UK.
Your portfolio is full of intense colour, is there a reason why you’ve chosen to go with such a unique vibrant feel to each shot?
As the style of photography I have always wanted to develop was taking form, I naturally went for its specifications in terms of color.
The colors just like the mise-en-scene/direction are part of a communication style which formats a message for the masses. Colors and especially the way I use them allow the doors of imagination to be opened and a different voyage according to the observer is possible. I do not like art that can only be understood by “experts”. I do not find that type of art interesting enough.
My vision is that art should be for everyone who has the necessary sensory organs to perceive it, giving them the opportunity to actually enjoy it.
There is a type of art that you just don’t get. And I believe that if art must be explained for 1 hour with a lot of references here and there before you start to enjoy it, for me it is failing art. My art is the
art that a kid can enjoy and s(he) who is more advanced can derive a deeper meaning out of it and all that is based on the state of mind of the observer. My art is the art patient enough to let itself be
appreciated by the complete novice and guide that person to higher levels of understanding at the pace that person would have consciously or unconsciously chosen.
This is the type of art I love and make.
What are you trying to capture through photography?
What I am running after with photography is that part of my own imagination I have not yet frozen for life. I used to be, especially in my beginnings, some kind of photo journalist, photographing mu surroundings, being a witness of my environment. Then the true Me hiding underneath the obvious actions started to show up and claim his throne. That’s where I began to theorize about Photomaking, my current style of
Photography. The other two I practice are Illustrations and Monochrome as you can see them on my website via the menu in the top right corner.
What are your main inspirations?
My imagination coupled with my daily encounters be they with objects, animals, people etc…
These constitute my inspirations. However for the photography my single real influence is David Lachapelle.
Which African photographers do you admire?
To be honest, I do not really know African Photographers but Malick Sidibe is one getting a lot of fans out there. Interestingly enough Malick Sidibe and Me are two people whose photography has been widely noticed for having photographed Africa like never before or like it had never really been seen before.
What cameras or techniques do you use?
I use a digital camera. If digital did not exist I would never have started photography. Film is just too long. I love instant feedback when working so I can rapidly take my decisions. I am an advocate of digital because
of the power it gives us through its speed, accuracy and room for man oeuvre.
But I am not a digital radical. If tomorrow or even today something betters the current
technology we have, I go for it. My most prefered computer tool is Photoshop. This is my lab. It is where the second part of the magic happens. When I am alone editing a photo, I feel like I am rewriting it and while
this is happening, I rediscover the photo. I rarely plan which way I am going to go for the postproduction, I prefer to astonish myself by creating something I did not expect. I let myself be guided by the creative force which leads me to sumptuous paths of colors and dreams.
Is photography your day job? If not, do you want it to be?
Photography and Creative Direction are my day jobs. A couple of months ago I became the creative director of a team attempting to win the bid for branding an airline. The team which was mainly a duo had Frederic Tape (http://Africaincorp.com) as another key member. The good news is we won and got selected out of established African advertising agencies. Now we are waiting for things to shape up more at this company in order to go on phase 2 of the work. I am in the process of polishing a story book based on my photography experiences. There are big chances a photobook like this has never been made before. It would be a pleasure to present it here as, the God willing, it is coming out really soon.
All images © Paul Sika
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