MONDOmagazine

By Kerry Freek

Yuula Benivolski is a tiny force in a polka-dotted dress and is a terrific artist. She is also very afraid of BOB, Twin Peaks’ evil entity from the Black Lodge, but often confronts her fear of him through the art of collage. I know this because I live in her old room, and the collage is still on the door. It helps me, too, because I’m also terrified by BOB. A few weeks ago, Yuula and I traded email messages and this is what happened.

MONDO: You’re a lady with your hands in many honey pots. You take photographs, you work with film, you paint in lovely water colours, you participate in Bruce Peninsula, you perform spoken word at NO FACE NO PROBLEM, you produce zines like First Fuck, you make shadows, and that’s just grazing the surface. Why so many media? Do you favour any particular format?

Yuula Benivolski: It’s interesting that you’re asking about the medium, since this has been coming up in our class discussions a lot lately. I originally came from painting, moved to photography/video and now interested mainly in installation. I feel like (this may sound like the worst cliche) rather than confining myself to one medium, I am much more comfortable navigating between or combining different media to invent a “new” medium that I feel happy to work with. This may be an excuse though. The real reason is I always come up with new ideas and they nag at me every day, but I am rarely focused enough to commit to one at a time.

MONDO: You’ve just moved to Montreal in pursuit of an MFA. What attracted you to this city? How do you think learning about art in Montreal is different than learning about art in Toronto?

YB: I don’t know yet how I feel about living in Montreal, I’ve only lived here for two months and it’s been raining a lot. I don’t feel too confident on my bike (the drivers are insane) and I already got a chance to wear my winter coat. But as far as school goes, it feels much different than my undergrad studies because we are extremely focused. There are six people in my grade, including me, so there is plenty of time during critique to discuss each person’s work. Concordia was the only school that I applied to, mainly because of the faculty and facilities. I felt like in order to stay focused I needed to be away from home, but not too far away. In a way I was right, though, I do miss home quite often. Sometimes it makes for a pretty sad distraction! The only thing is, when I go to my studio I forget about everything else. So I figure, give it another couple of months and we’ll see. You know?

MONDO: For this year’s Nuit Blanche, you collaborated with Amy Lam to create the **New** Natural Wonder of Toronto — a levitating rock. To quote a friend of mine, it was “both a ridiculous and peaceful” sight. During my visit to the installation, I, too, found myself wavering between outright laughter and a state of meditation. Why do you think the rock had such effects? Did you and Amy have other expectations? How did other people react to the rock?

YB: We were thinking of doing something that could sum up the “nature” of Nuit Blanche, which in itself is pretty ridiculous. I think that people did not know how to react to it because they probably expected something more “mature” or flashy? Considering we worked on it from Montreal, and the short time frame we were given to install, we did a great job. Though, Amy was the one who came up with the “levitating rock” after we spent many confused months together discussing what we were going to do. I think the idea was easier for her to grasp because it’s kind of related to her own work.

A lot of people seemed to be confused by it, Amy said that a geology student asked her “how does it work?” and some guy from the Toronto Star wrote that it was the “low point of the whole night,” which is pretty amazing. I was just really impressed with the final result. After Nuit Blanche was over, we decided that we couldn’t bring it home with us, so we left it leaning against a real rock a block south from the church. I think it’s still there.

MONDO: I saw a series of photographs you’d begun to do last spring, starring the woods and a figure dressed in red. Can you tell me about these images?

YB: I am interested in ambiguity. The mask is a good tool for me to use, because it immediately creates uncertainty. The person wearing the mask can see you but you cannot see them. It’s frightening to me. In my photographs, the identity of the subject is always concealed, whether through physical or projected mask, or complete removal of distinct features. Because you are not able to see the subject(s), you cannot tell what they are going to do next, or why they would.

This series is similar to another from a few years ago. The difference is, it was black and white, and the figures blended in with the environment. In this series they “pop out,” but are never visible enough for us to understand what is going on. I enjoy that kind of tension. It’s what I look for every day, to reveal or uncover the concealed — when it comes to others. When it comes to me though, I tend to cover up. It is more interesting this way.

MONDO: You often make mention of artists and art you admire. Who or what is captivating you these rusty October days, and why?

YB: Many many things! I will mention a couple:

Ana Mendieta for her Siluetas, Danish photographer Trine Sondergaard, Japanese butoh performer Kazuo Ohno. Also, I recently discovered Gillian Wearing and Douglas Gordon. It’s hard to say why they captivate me. I like fragments of their work, because it is similar in feeling to what I feel when I think of my own. There is an awkwardness and inwardness in their work that I find intriguing.

MONDO: Any future projects and/or upcoming shows?

YB: I decided after Nuit Blanche that I couldn’t embark on more adventures… so no shows planned in the near future. I am working on one difficult project that involves a lot of new learning and experimenting. Right now I feel like taking a long break from showing anything new would be the best approach. It’s the only way I can get myself to focus!