In this continuing series, I am showcasing some of the talented artists who have crossed my path these past few months and years. Their work ranges from photography to performance to something in between. This month, a controversial artist, 23 year old Lauren White, aka. Raymi the Minx.Voted Best Blog, Best Humour Blog, and Best Personal Blog in the 2006 Canadian Blog Awards, Lauren has garnered many more fans, and definitely a few more detractors along the way. This record of her personal life can range from wisely clever to embarrassingly juvenile in the space of one or two sentences, but that's part of the charm and unique identity she portrays. Controversy arises from the fact that she is the Queen of Her Domain and naysayers are ridiculed not only by her, but by her protective fans as well. She writes about anything, and will post images of herself drunk, eating, using the toilet, or completely nude. Fair warning if you click on the link to her site.
Is it performance art? Some seem to think so. Still others are convinced that she is simply seeking fame and adulation by any means possible. Lauren, or "Raymi" as her alter ego would admit, embraces it all.
She is the author of the book, Marketable Depression, a story that details her own struggles with alcoholism and drug use in her attempt to self-medicate and make sense of the world around her.
Without further ado, an interview. By email:
Lauren White
aka Raymi the Minx
artist, author, provocateur
Q. Lauren, when and why did you decide to become an artist?A. just sort of happened i didnt really decide i just realised that writing manically is basically the only thing i enjoy doing, i go by the code find the one thing you enjoy doing most and get someone to pay you to do it, that or get a blog and convince people to be obsessed over it.
Q. Cool. So what kind of advice would you give to those thinking about taking the plunge but worry about the commitment?
A. wasted talent is a tragedy, you don't have to sacrifice everything else in your life to do one isolated artistic thing, you can be an artist and a yuppie simultaneously
Q. All right...well how about some words to live by, then?
A. be original and unordinary and dont let anyone ever tell you otherwise when people say that you will never make it ignore them and keep doing your thing knowing you will make something of yourself, those people are cowards with nothing to offer themselves and seeing you create makes them feel lazy and untalented, don't let people project their insecurities onto you, ever.
Q. Great. So, anything else to finish up with?
A. buy my book
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Synopsis of Marketable Depression:
Marketable Depression is a pretentious title I came up with one day when I was feeling clever. Ever since taking English Media in high school I have been fascinated with advertising and how the masses can be effectively manipulated and also how depression is being exploited and sold back to us and perhaps its about time we say something about it. There isnt much having to do with marketing in this book but there is a lot having to do with depression and alcohol. This book is about me and everything that has happened to me as a result of depression. Everything is true.
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images: Saddam (created 2 weeks before hanging), Lindsay Lohan, Tom Cruise.
2 comments:
awesome post. you make her seem really cool.
To quote lauren:
"honestly i dont know what to tell you what is and isnt art
you perceive me as an artist i dunno if i consider myself worthy of that
i dunno
if there is another term for what i do i would like to know"
There is a lot more humility in her than a person would get from just scanning her site for a few minutes. It's this disparity that made me want to do a small interview.
After all, I heard someone say once that we don't really know who the true artists are right now, that's for people a hundred years from now to decide.
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