In conversation with melke1

From 31 July to 2 August, the artist melke1 is exhibiting his works under the title ANSICHTSSACHEN (A Matter of Perspective) at the Atrium Tower. We spoke to him.

Your exhibition is called Ansichtssachen (A Matter of Perspective). What inspired you to choose that title? What exactly counts as art is a matter of opinion, and paintings are, in the literal sense, things to be looked at. So I had the thematic aspect of Ansichtssachen(A Matter of Perspective) and the objective aspect that pictures are things to be looked at, and that’s how I came up with the title.

Why the goldfish? There are three works featuring it, after all. The first picture in the series was ‘Woman with Goldfish’ – originally just a bit of fun. I’d painted a woman walking a dog, and I simply replaced the dog with a goldfish because I thought it was funny. That combination then led to ‘Woman without Goldfish’. And because both pictures already existed, ‘Woman as Goldfish’ was the next logical step. Somehow, the goldfish has just become my thing now.

Have you ever experienced a creative block – and how did you deal with it? You can actually see that quite clearly in the goldfish works. I look back at what I’ve done so far, consider what I liked about it, and try to draw new ideas from that. Using myself as inspiration – that helps me come up with new motifs for my pictures.

What’s your favourite colour? In everyday life, I’m more of a muted, dark sort of person. Professionally, of course, I like all colours equally – discrimination is out of the question. But if I’m honest: blue.

Is it easier or harder to make art in the age of social media? I think it’s much easier these days to make a living from your art. You’re no longer dependent on being taken on by a gallery or getting a place at art school – you can simply take matters into your own hands. At the same time, social media brings its own challenges: more competition, dependence on algorithms, and the pressure to be constantly visible. So it’s not all sunshine and roses – but overall, it’s a good time to be an artist.

Has social media influenced how you work or what you post? I still see myself as an artist, not an influencer. My social media activity is guided by what I have to show artistically. If I haven’t painted a new picture for two weeks, I sometimes simply don’t post anything at all. The artwork comes first, the post afterwards.

What advice would you give to young artists who want to go freelance? The classic advice: enjoy what you do. Keep at it. It’ll work out eventually.

Tickets for the exhibition from 31 July to 2 August at the Atrium Tower are available here.