Meet Artevaggio’s Featured Artist: Benjamin Sohnel

When did you first realize you were an artist?
This was probably in 1998 when I started to paint black structures on white varnished wood, though I started drawing, when I was 10. Now I am 30.

Could you tell us about your work?
I disassemble, layer, and partial-multiply algorithmic patterns. Thereby emerges a complex structural, which I superpose with artificial or natural textures and turn this into a sophisticated surface by means of distortion and exposure to light. The entire process is driven by inner voice, which leads me through. I call it Digital Surface Art. Digital Surface Art is an advancement of algorithmic art and made entirely with a computer. It is not art of chance, but art of choice. Digital Surface Art is abstract and non-representational. That said it is self-governed and does not reproduce definite and apparitional reality. Digital Surface Art opens space for imagination of the beforehand unimagined. As a medium, I use laserimage on aludibond, which gives Digital Surface Art a stunning physical appearance.

What artists have influenced your work?
When I was in high school I had an advanced art course. During that time, I came across lots of artists which nurtured my eyes and widened my perception. I also like to go to art exhibitions. There are many artists who influence my work, though I am not consciously aware of this. Digital Surface Art is unconventional, unlike doing painting I have the impression that I am the only one who does art like that. I sometimes call my art modern painting. The mouse pointer is my brush and the filters are my colors. Further, the software I use for the skeleton is 15 years old. It’s nearly extinct, so I probably will not have many followers. This is good and bad. It’s good, because that moves my art into a unique position. It’s bad, because I have no one I can get direct inspiration from.

What is your creative inspiration?
A composition of mine is not pre-determined, but is developed during the process. I use the tools at my disposal and just do it. I first started with Digital Surface Art in 1997. It’s a long time ago, have learned a lot since and am still learning. That said my style is still in development and in search for a perfect surface. When you paint a woman sitting on a chair, the painting is then a representation of the woman sitting on that chair. Digital Surface Art has no such connection to the real world. It creates another reality, which does not exist beforehand, though Digital Surface Art can sometimes be compared with microscopic recordings of some material. Still it is non-representational as this matter does not really exist.

When I gave my piece “In the Eye of a Fly” its title, I thereby link it to the representational world. “In the Eye of the Fly” is my imagination of fly-vision. I thereby impose non-reality to a form of reality. But what does the fly see? As I can not fully answer this question, as this lies in the eye of the fly, “In the eye of the fly” remains non-representational.

When I gave my piece “Slighted Hope” it’s title, it was my representation of my personal experience in this moment. But as hope is a mental concept it is intangible, untouchable and does not really exist in the physical world, so “Slighted Hope” is also non-representational.

My piece “Creamspan” is an interval in cream. It gives me time wonder as it sets me off the representational world. I prefer the non-representational worlds, because in them much more is possible than in the representational. “Blue space” is a static place, where everything in it remains and stays there forever. It’s my favorite nonrepresentational world.

In the eye of the fly 1 by Benjamin Sohnel

What other interests do you have besides creating art?
For the past 3 months I have taken up running. It’s sad to say that its winter now and the roads are full of snow, so instead I have to go to gym. I also do Muay Thai at the gym and feel it is the ultimate sport for me. I love the training because while I’m there, I feel I can get away from it all. Also I like to play Blitz-chess online against varying opponents. One game lasts five minutes per player and I only play white. I am also interested in mind power, how thoughts can be used to create ones reality.

What advice would you give to a new artist?
Try to be unique in something and believe in yourself. Think outside the box.

Could you give some advice about the business side of being an artist?
Try to establish a unique name to represent yourself and your art. Promote your name and your art on the Internet. Expose your art, wherever you can. Use statistics to get an idea of how many people are watching you and where they come from. Do not just focus on creating your art. Also try to develop a story around your art, which makes it more interesting. Maybe at some time people will contact you and show their interest.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years from now?
I am just planning to build up my own designer label. I want to bring Digital Surface Art to textile. I am planning to start with cravats. If this somehow works, I will expand to other products. My dream is to have a running label in 10 years from which I can afford to live. This won’t not stop me from doing Digital Surface Art. I also have another dream. I would like to show my art in an international museum.

CLICK HERE to go to Benjamin’s personal website.