Ia Kutateladze
1. Where were you born and where are you from ?
I was born and raised in Tbilisi, Georgia. Now I am based in Berlin.
2. What is your first memory connected to the art world ?
I have a terrible memory, so most of my childhood has unfortunately faded. But, my father is a painter and fresco restaurateur, so I guess seeing him create would be the first memory connected to art. I had quite a broad interest as a child, so I cannot say that, becoming an artist was a dream of mine early on.
3. Have you always worked in the art/design field ?
I actually started studying psychology in the US, and took a lot of different classes in liberal arts program, a lot of them in art and design fields, from there I got more and more interested in pursuing this direction. So I moved to Italy to study interior and product design. Since then, I have always been in this field. It is the biggest passion and joy of my life, so I cannot imagine doing anything else.
4. What led you to the design creation ?
As I mentioned, this is what I studied and found my true self in, so it was a natural continuation of life for me. But the course of the ways of creating changed completely throughout the years.
5. How would you describe your creative process and it influences ?
My process of creating has changed drastically since I moved to Berlin. In Georgia, I used to collaborate with artisans, creating mainly sketches and technical drawings. Since moving to Berlin, I needed to find a way to base the whole production on myself, so I started working with metal, creating jewelry, and then with clay and other materials. Now, I create all the pieces with my hands, I can never go back to how it was. This became the most important aspect of the creative process for me; to feel the material, to work intuitively, to learn from each of them something different, the process is just so much more intimate and satisfying. It does come with a lot of difficulties though.
6. Could you describe a typical day of your work ?
I need my mornings to be slow, so I like to take my time at home. I don’t go to the studio very early in the morning. I try to respect my needs in this sense. I don’t really have a typical day, as it depends on what I am working on. If it is an order, then the process is much more straightforward and structured. If it is more conceptual work, then it consists of a lot of sketching, journaling, trying things out. Playing around. Some days are more oriented on production, some are more imaginative and playful.
7. Why did you choose the specific materials you work with ?
Somehow, they naturally spoke to me. As I didn’t have any previous experience working with materials prior to moving to Berlin, I was very open and curious, still am. I love clay, as it really grounds me and teaches me quite a lot, but also drives me crazy quite a lot too. Even though it is the main material at the moment, I dont want to be bound to it. I would like to try and learn everything. It is my biggest dream to have a big enough studio with many different material tools and equipment.
8. What are the technical particularities of your creations ?
I am more and more interested in creating bigger objects, furniture, and sculpture with clay and not only in clay. But since this material is very fragile, before being fired, it comes with a lot of challenges, when you want to build bigger, more complicated structures. There have been numerous occasions when I had to redo very time-consuming pieces over and over again. So I have to be very patient and persistent in this sense. But in general, I am not a technical perfectionist. I like the visible flaws of handcrafted materials. It’s more humane for me.
9. What advices could you give to beginning artists who would like to create sculptural design works ?
Find your inner voice, and your true genuine vision, it takes some time to get there, but believe in yourself and don’t just make things for the sake of selling. Be mindful about the fine line between being inspired by someone and copying their work. And most importantly, be honest with yourself and true to your values throughout the crazy ride.
10. If your works had to belong to a design movement, in which one would you define it ?
Lately I’m very much into surrealism, maybe somewhere between brutalism and surrealism.
11. What designers and artists have influenced you ?
I am not sure if any designers directly have influenced me, there are too many, whos work I love, would be difficult to pick.
12. What contemporary designers do you appreciate ?
Also so much of them, I always find it difficult to name a couple. But, just a few examples are Panorammma, Laurids Gallee, Minjae Kim, Wendy Andreu, fellow Georgians Rooms Studio and Studio Gypsandconcrete.
13. What contemporary artists (in any kind of art) have you been inspired by ?
Some examples are Brancusi, Barbara Hepworth, Ruth Asawa, Louise Nevelson, Alina Szapocznikow, Marc Leschelier, GaHee Park.
14. If you had to summarize your creations in one word or sentence, what would it be ?
A quest to directly connect personal and surrounding emotional and psychological processes with the material and form exploration.
15. Is there anything you would like to add ?
We are living in very difficult times and hope that we will all find healing and peace in honest creative expression.
Proust Questionnaire with very short answers (one or a few words) :
(The Proust Questionnaire is a set of questions answered by the French writer Marcel Proust. Other historical figures who have answered confession albums are Oscar Wilde, Karl Marx, Arthur Conan Doyle, Stéphane Mallarmé, Paul Cézanne…)
1. What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Freedom of creation and peace of mind
2. What is your greatest fear?
To not be able to do what I love the most
3. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Rigidity
4. What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Pretense, dishonesty
5. Which living person do you most admire?
My mother
6. What is your greatest extravagance?
Extravagance is a too strong of a word
7. What is your current state of mind?
Disheartened
8. What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Being educated
9. What is the quality you most like in a man ?
Nonconforming the toxic gender roles
10. What is the quality you most like in a woman ?
Nonconforming the toxic gender roles
11. Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Not sure
12. Which talent would you most like to have?
Being able to work on all the materials out there
13. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Being able to be better salesperson
14. What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Self compassion and being true to oneself
15. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?
Zebra
16. Where would you most like to live?
Seaside in Italy
17. What is your most treasured possession?
I guess, my books
18. What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Complete hopelessness
19. What is your favorite occupation?
Making morning coffee
20. What is your most marked characteristic?
Having exact idea of what I want
21. What do you most value in your friends?
Honesty and uniqueness
22. Who are your favorite writers?
Just to pick one – Haruki Murakami
23. Who is your hero of fiction?
Pippi Longstocking
24. Which historical figure do you most identify with?
No one
25. Who are your heroes in real life?
Any human being who manages to be kind and genuine regardless of the difficulties they face
26. What are your favorite names?
Mia
27. What is it that you most dislike?
Bias and hypocrisy
28. What is your greatest regret?
I try not to regret things
29. How would you like to die?
In peace
30. What is your motto?
No where to be but within
