'For the past few years, Dutch artist Harma Heikens has been drawing on subjects from the edge of our consumer society. She reveals that which is not usually clearly visible in a world that is obsessed by a flawless exterior. It’s the flip side of things that matters to her, as illustrated by an early drawing of “bambi’, not cute at all but throwing up violently. This hidden truth is in the distortion of what should be beautiful and whole, like the bust of Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, her perfect skin covered in sores (or are they zits she’s scratched open?). Heikens takes a sardonic pleasure in tranforming clichés, by undermining the traditional meaning of the toy figures and dolls we know from childhood. Their hidden horrors become visible. She does this with gusto and imagination, and with a lot of conviction. Her latest work is a good example of this. It refers to a consumerism gone haywire, in which people as well as things have a market value. Youth and beauty, though transitory, have become commodities that only the happy few can afford to buy.
'Harma Heikens wants to show us that all around us monsters are reaching out to youthful beauty in order to feed on it, hoping to regenerate what has been lost. They refuse to believe that there are things that aren’t actually for sale. The work touches on the age-old theme of the battle between thanatos and eros as it manifests itself in modern society. Heikens, with her playful yet forceful imagery holds up a mirror to us all.' -- Margriet Kruyver, aeroplastics contemporary
Harma Heikens' studio
Harma Heikens Official Website
HH @ Witzenhausen Gallery
'Paradise Lost: The Works of Harma Heikens'
The Malformed Kitsch of Harma Heikens'
HH interviewed @ Castle Magazine
'tweeenentwintig beelden: harma heikens'
Harma Heikens interviewed
by Claudio Parentela
q)How did you get started making art?
a)I've been making things as long as I remember, but didn't think that had anything to do with "art". I always wanted to be an artist, though; I imagined that I would be painting large abstract canvasses when I grew up.
q)How would you describe your art?
a)Don't know.Conceptual cartoonism? I hope it's sort of direct. The process of making these things is rather time-consuming, I do four or five pieces a year.
q)Where do you get the inspiration for your art?
a)The newspapers, b-movies, t.v.commercials and everyday life.
q)What other artists inspire you?
a)Writers like for instance Elfride Jelinek, Michel Houllebecq and Douglas Coupland, grafic novelists like Charles Burnes and Daniel Clowes, film directors like Lucas Moodysson and a lot of other visual artists, too many to mention, not always the ones that make work simular to mine, it is more about an attitude.
q)What is your main medium of choice?
a)Sculpture and installation. The sculpture is mostly made of light-weight synthetics (all water-based and friendly to the environnement).
q)What are you working on now?
a)An installation in collaboration with a poet. It is about consumerism and child-prostitution.
Show
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p.s. Hey. First, a general thank you so much to everyone who participated in the weekend's workshop, and most especially to Nick, of course. You guys are the best. I mean, you just are, and that pretty much says it. Okay, I'll go ahead and start the week. ** Wolf, Hey. Oh, ha ha, that's not what I said or at least not what I meant to say at all. I was trying to say that I couldn't remember the point when the desire to be famous became a kamikaze mission wherein one couldn't do something offbeat even behind closed doors without dooming oneself to the total destruction of your reputation and life, a la Lindsey Lohan, for instance. If anything, my sympathies are with her re: the battle with the media. For instance, in a number of the reviews of my 'SiH' book, people have noted how, nowadays, Keanu Reeves' funny, friendly quip of an answer -- 'No, but you never know' -- to my question of whether he was gay or not would cause a media frenzy, and that interview was only back in the mid-90s not a million years ago. Anyway, that's what I was rather poorly saying. And thanks very much for your thoughts on Nick's piece, of course. ** Alan, Hey. ** Pilgarlic, Thanks for talking to Nick. Wow, I'm going to be saying that a lot today. Well, your discovery of Steely Dan and your life in their light matches up with mine really closely. I think the first song of theirs that hooked me for good was 'Boston Rag', which, although early, I still rank among their masterpieces. I didn't see them live until the first reunion tour, and the various online clips of their early performances don't make me regret waiting all that much. I met Donald Fagen once, had dinner with him. In the 80s. He was dating this terrific comedic writer Veronica Geng, now sadly dead, and she was a friend of some close friends of mine, and so I ended up across a dinner table from him. He was very witty, friendly but distant. He spoke very sparingly in perfectly constructed sentences. He kindly answered some of my fanboy questions about SD lyrics in funny, vague, obtuse ways. That was my only in-person encounter of substance, although I saw Walter Becker across restaurants a few times. Anyway, you speak beautifully about them, what they held and did, and I agree with you pretty much across the board. My favorites of theirs are 'Pretzel Logic' and 'Katy Lied', I guess. ** Syreearmwellion, Much gratitude from me for your thoughtful take on Nick's piece. I haven't heard the new Kaki King 'Junior'. I'm totally going to seek it out pronto, though, thanks. Sounds amazing. ** Killer Luka, Ah, you found George. Well, he was given a couple of different names by the sites he worked for, but George seemed to be the most common one. He was featured in maybe four, five videos total. They were on, I think, three different sites, all run by the same porn company based in Romania, all of whose sites are recognizable due to the super brightly colored decor and furniture that the company always employs as sets. Anyway, that's why I assumed he's Romanian. His most recent vid is about a year and a half old now, and I haven't seen him do anything since. He has developed such a huge cult following in the last year or so that I'm surprised he hasn't reappeared. The way porn stars tend to just vanish without a trace can be so vexing. You might be able to find more of his vids by searching xTube for 'George'. Two of the other sites he worked for are Chilloutboys and Cumintomyass. Anyway, there you go. ** David Ehrenstein, The talk about your father is very moving. Will you explore your relationship with him in your in-progress memoir either directly or circumstantially, or is it too difficult? ** JoeM, Thanks a lot for your close attention and thoughts re: Nick's piece. Oh, right, if it's a prequel, that would be a problem re: Ripley, although now that they've done that de-aging cgi thing on Jeff Bridges for 'Tron 2', who knows? I did read somewhere that Weaver was in the new film, or at least I thought that's what I read. ** Shane Le Vein, Hey. Mm, oh, to my mind, there were a number of very insightful, sharp, and helpful comments before Wolf's very valuable one appeared, namely the comments by Jesse Hudson and Colin, just to name the first two that spring to mind. I think supportive yet detailed comments are just as valuable to a writer as are the comments that take issue with their work. No big, but I think the workshop was already in full swing and producing value on Friday. Oh, gosh, take all the time you need on the Martin Bladh post. I'm nothing but completely honored by and grateful for your offer and for your devotion to the project. Yeah, thanks a ton, Shane. That's fantastic and very kind of you. ** Christopher/ Mark, Thanks a lot, Mark. Hope all's ultra-well with you. ** Joseph, I'm already on the 'Murder Party' hunt. No luck so far. 'From Here to Eternity', hunh, I think I only half-watched the movie version at some point. Anyway, well, thank you kindly for your kindly thoughts, my friend. Selling birdhouses is such a charming sounding occupation that I kind of hope you get that job. I mean the job of selling birdhouses. That's so, I don't know, pretty or something. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with Nick. Well, for that press to have asked to read the whole thing is no small thing, man, so I say accept your semi-triumph's rush. Getting past the query stage is pretty rare, I think. Awesome. ** Amccartney, Hi, Alistair! A total pleasure, need I even say. Oh, shit, sorry to hear about Jeff's mom's death. I don't think I ever met her, but I remember Jeff talking about her. Whittier is a kind of odd, super American place, no? That part of LA always seems so landlocked and kind of weirdly hidden away, isolated for some reason. My real life friend Ziggy who was the model for 'Ziggy' in 'Try' grew up there too. El Cholo, yum. I'm good. I'm glad your book is progressing. Mine too. Say more when you end up with more time. Take care, A., and love to Tim too. ** JW Veldhoen, How's it hanging way up there? Thanks for speaking to Nick. I'd actually wager that given all the fantastic, adventurous newish indie presses in the States, getting Nick's work published might not be anywhere near as tough as one might think. ** Colin, Hey. Many thanks for your attentive response to Nick's piece. As I mentioned in my comment, your ideas about his use of color were so terrific and insightful to my mind that I could only state my agreement with them. You still in Helsinki or pining for it? ** The Dreadful Flying Glove, Yeah, from afar, I'd guess the lousy state of the British music press is a big factor. Back in its prime, the NME certainly had its drawbacks, but it was a real force with a lot of terrific writers and just a fascinating, must-read organ. It was hugely influential and persuasive within the US. The lack of something like that is not the answer to the problem, obviously. I don't know what is. I hear you about Underworld. I really should try to listen to their newer stuff more freshly. Oh, and your read on Nick's piece was wonderful, and thank you for it. ** Paul Joseph, Hey, man! It's really nice to see you! How have you been? What's been happening in and around you since we last traded texts? If you find it easy and cool to be around here more often, that would be a real pleasure. Take care. ** Dennis Cooper, Thanks for your comments on Nick's piece, man, dude, pal! ** _Black_Acrylic, Hi, Ben. I appreciate your good thoughts re: Nick's piece. The Christopher Wool comparison is very interesting. Your blog piece about the artist's work was sharp and convincing, I thought, and the bits of her work there seem very intriguing. I hope you get to interview her. Everyone, go here to both discover an interesting new, young artist and read our pal _Black_Acrylic's smart, smitten take on her work. The click/journey is recommended. ** Paul Curran, Thanks very much, Paul. How did the birthday festivities pan out? ** Pascal, Hi, P. Very nice to see you, natch. And thanks for speaking to Nick's piece. I'm fine, basically in a 'novel work trumps all' mode. I still haven't read 'Imperial Bedrooms'. No excuse for that except my preoccupation with the novel. Maybe I'll go pick it up today finally. I am dying to read it. Busy and good sounds good, man. I hear you. See you again soon, I hope. ** Steevee, That is an interesting dream. I give it a thumbs up. You interview Noe this week, right? You all prepped for that? ** David, Hey, and thanks much. ** Jesse Hudson, Hey, J. Thanks so very much for lending your expertise to the workshop. Hope Monday is cuddling you. ** Mark Gluth, Thanks so much for your read and thoughts, man. I hope the family emergency is post-worries now. Yury is a lot stronger than he looks, clearly. Or I'm more fragile. Or both. Probably both. Dude, that house of cards thing, yeah, I'm so right there with you re: mine. Yikes. Why do you think blanking out the response to 'TLWoMK' is so crucial? Well, I suppose I do the same thing when I'm writing something new, but the outside view is still there anyway if not forefronted, and I'm not entirely sure the kind of distraction/ gravity it provides isn't helpful, i.e. considering fundamental things in your work that are worth preserving or mutating or something. ** Memoirs of a Heroinhead, My comment to Shane is for you too, if you don't mind reading over his shoulder. Wow, that made no sense. Sorry. Love to you, sir. ** Changeling, Hey, man. Fantastic thinking and thoughts to Nick, man. Thank you a lot. Oh, I just caught your late breaking comment at the last second. Mm, the request for submissions thing ... shit, uh, was it the anthology Kevin Killian is editing? Or the queer themed issue of Pank Magazine that Tim Jones-Yelvington is guest-editing? Do those ring a bell? I'll keep thinking/ trying to remember. Cool that you're still heading over here. September, that works. Lock me down for a visit or two, okay? ** Inthemostpeculiarway, Greetings and gratitude for your words to Nick. You don't like hot chocolate? I don't either, but I thought I was sort of alone in that distaste. I might walk across broken glass for a good hot fudge sundae though. Drunk scrabble ... that sounds weird. Maybe it's just the way I get drunk whenever I rarely do. Words go bye-bye. I really like the sound and feel of that mansion thing you wrote. Keep it. Too bad 'Rent Girl' wasn't so hot. Some of Michele's other books are really good. 'Valencia' and 'The Chelsea Whistle' are recommended if you ever want to try her again. Uh, let's see, my weekend. Don't get excited, not that you would. On Saturday, I did the novel thing for a bunch of hours. I realized that I forgot to pay my rent, and I hoped I wasn't in trouble, and I'll find out today. I thought about doing some things I didn't do. I don't remember what they were. I bought my food and cigarette supplies uneventfully. That Christophe Honore film I'm in premiered at the Locarno Film Festival. I searched for early reactions and reviews, and I found three blog-style reports. One denounced the film as meandering porn. Another one was pretty positive and said the film's a scathing attack on religion and Sarkozy. The third one didn't know what to make of the film and couldn't figure out what kind of audience it was trying to appeal to. That was the only one that mentioned my scene. It referred to me as 'the neighbor', and it said the scene was 'tender', which is a pretty weird read on that scene. Around about 6 pm, Kiddiepunk and I headed off to Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. I wanted to walk there, and he wanted to take the metro, so we took the metro there then walked back home. My nachos hit the spot. As did my veggieburger and iced tea. Kp's burger and fries seemed to hit his spot too. We ate and watched/ tried not to watch the unavoidable music videos that played in every direction in which one could look for the duration. Videos: John Cougar Mellencamp, Whitesnake, Bruce Springsteen, Phil Collins, The Killers, Nickleback, Creed, The Hold Steady, Black Crowes, Bangles, Klaxons, ... It started raining while we walked home, but Kp had an umbrella, so our pace was not slackened. After that, nothing much happened followed by sleep. On Sunday, I worked on my novel all day, or until about, oh, 5 pm, and then I reread Nick's workshop piece closely and typed up my thoughts and finally posted them on the blog around 10:30 pm or so. I stopped to eat somewhere in there. I watched a pretty good documentary about Brigitte Bardot on Arte, and half-watched an episode of the guilty pleasure French reality show 'Fort Broyard', and then I hit the sack. That's everything I can remember. How was/is your Monday, fella? ** Statictick, Thanks for the awesome chiming in, man. Wonderful week? Cool. Sluttiness involved? Ace. ** Misanthrope, Hey, G. Thanks a billion and a half for talking so thoughtfully to Nick about his thang. I'm afraid the lightness of any color is entirely my fault. I tried to replicate the colors in Nick's original, but I failed to do the rich hues justice on many occasions. Otherwise, what's up, dude? Your blame seems not misplaced to me. Re: the media/ celebrity thing. It's complex shit. Well, it isn't, but the wtf is. ** 'Stoopid Slapped Puppies', Ah, Nick. I was really hoping the experience would be valuable to you, and the charge in your words shows me it has been as much as the words themselves do. Ha ha, I do remember your initial question about a possible literary equivalent of Einsturzende Neubauten, and how totally interesting to think of your piece in regards to that original question and desire of yours. You're very right that I meant every word I said about the piece, every word I say about the works of everyone here. I'm an encouraging person, and that's a fundamental and uncontrollable part of me, but I never and would never flatter someone's work. I think that's a dangerous and massively selfish thing to do, and it's just the weirdest and most magical thing ever that the artists who keep gathering around this place are so fucking talented to a one. It's really the weirdest, luckiest thing ever for me. So, yeah, just thank you, Nick, for the privilege. Enjoy your time in Spain like hell. Much love to you, man. ** Little foal, Hi, Darren! Well, when we eventually get an 'in-person', we'll have to have an 'uhh' and 'um' contest, and I'd bet the farm that I'll win. It's one of the perks and curses of growing up in the spacey realms they call LA. I didn't know about that slew of Avital Ronell vids. Awesome, thank you, pal. Re: the love and gratitude, ... as the children of Los Angeles used (at least) to say, I'm rubber, you're glue. ** Right, Thank you one more time, everybody. See what you make of the art of Harma Heikens until I next hook up with you. Tomorrow being a safe bet.
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