Miloushka Bokma, Clue — Miloushka Bokma, *Clue*

Interview by Qimei Fu

Can you talk about any unique experience when you were creating the series Thuis, Home, Heimat?

The guiding principle of Thuis, Home, Heimat is the endless stream of photos of refugees that I see daily, situations that touch me, a certain posture or facial expression form images in my head that I put on the scene on location.

I have consciously chosen to work with Western people. By letting Western people figure in my work, I want to bring the refugee problem closer. It is not something that is far away and, therefore, does not concern us. It can happen to us all.

Being displaced, losing, and how you deal with this is a recurring theme in my work. I am interested in the common emotions. That many experiences are universal, even if you experience them alone, is a comforting thought.

Miloushka Bokma, Thuis, Home, Heimat — Miloushka Bokma, *Thuis, Home, Heimat*

Your photography has an exceptional atmosphere of performance art and movie. How did you get into photography? And how did you find your particular way of doing it?

When I was a kid, I wanted to be an actress. I liked to invent my own stories and play them. But I just wasn't as extravagant and instead worked behind the scenes as a director. In my photography, I could develop this capability in my staged photographic projects. A couple of years ago, I started to make video work. In my photographic work, I try to tell a story in one image. I create the situations as snapshots of personal history: a film still without actual film. From this way of working, the need to include continuing what happened in moving image was created. In my work, I try to capture that magic moment. In my videos, this frozen moment gets a sequel.

Who are the artists you admire, and what do you like about them?

For me, in my work, I am mainly inspired by daily life. But of course, I also have examples. All very different, but what they have in common is the emotional layer in their work and a subworld, which we usually do not see. For videowork, it will be definitively Bill Viola for his layers of meaning and emotional response, with almost painful clarity.

I also love Matthew Barney's combination of traditional modes of narrative cinema with elements of performance, sculpture, and opera. For his unconventional, almost photographic compositions, the painter Michael Borremans unsettling scenes and suggestive psychological spaces. The allusive or illogical scenes he creates shows qualities that describe the human condition.

The photographer Jeff Wall, I like his typical tension that comes from a combination of the subtle difference between fiction and imaginary. Besides the work of artists, I inspired by modern dance and modern dance choreographers like Wim van de Keybus, through the integration of film footage in his performances he creates complex relationships between film and scene. And I saw the dance piece: Vessel from Damien Jalet together with artist Kohei Nawa. It was an exceptional experience, in which visual art, the human body, and dance fused.

What are you working on now?

The series I am currently working on reflects the recent Covid-19 pandemic in which we worldwide came to a halt during the lockdown. The interaction with each other, the feelings of alienation and distance are reflected in this series.

Describe your creative process in one word.

Intuition

If you could teach a one-hour class on anything, what would it be?

I would like to teach a course on Serendipity. Serendipity is an unplanned, unexpected but fortunate discovery, seeing the special in the ordinary.

What was the last book you read or film you saw that inspired you?

I am a great lover of reading. The trilogy of Marianne Fredriksson Children of Paradise is an incredible book. I also love the books of Haruki Murakami.

What is the most played song in your music library?

I don't listen much to music, but Pata Pata from Miriam Makeba makes me very happy.

How do you take your coffee?

The first thing I drink in the morning and always with warm milk.