Creativity Laid Bare: Q&A with Into the Wild curator Estela Oliva

– by Anthony Leyton

On 9–12 June at Somerset House, Estela will open the doors of Into the Wild – an exhibition devoted to the projects and processes undertaken by MV Works’ nine pioneering participants. She tells us what we can expect to see, and offers a vision for a bold and brilliant future of hybrid creative endeavour…

I have been working as a mentor for Lawrence Lek, who is one of the participants of MV Works. Through that I met Ursula and the amazing Makerversity team. They’ve invited me to creative direct the showcase, finding the concept and the common themes between participants as well as designing the exhibition and programme of events. It has been a challenging experience but also very rewarding. 

I am interested in decoding the creative journey of the MV Works participants: understanding what are the common drivers, models, challenges, motivations and emotions of their creative process. I see the creative process as a journey, not just for this standalone project; it forms part of the participant’s career and life path. Hence the name of the showcase is Into the Wild: Decoding the Creative Journey. Creativity is wild and there are no set rules. 

I would like the participants to understand better their own practice and gain valuable insights to help them move forward better equipped, as creative businesses. I think this deconstruction can be beneficial to help any creative people understand where we are at today and how we can think of tomorrow. 

The showcase takes form as an open-format exhibition with parallel events and I am also planning to make a documentary film that will be released online after the event. Through the showcase, the live demos, some playful spaces, the film, a series of conversations and workshops, my aim is for people to discover, experiment and get inspired to unlock their creativity. I also hope that the reflections outlined throughout the journey will deepen their personal practices and motivate entrepreneurial spirits. 

We’re interested in cross-disciplinary entrepreneurship and we both like working with people who are comfortable moving between different worlds (art, design, technology, entrepreneurship) and particularly on MV Works that’s been super important. Also we really believe in putting work out into the ‘market’ – getting things out there, rather than just polishing beautiful work in your bedroom. 

I am really excited about the eclectic mix of projects, they are all very interesting. There is a good mix of design, making and art projects. 

From an artistic perspective, I am especially interested in Lawrence Lek’s work, which brings together art with gaming, music and experience from a critical angle. He represents a new generation of artists who work as polymaths and are self-sufficient and independent. I find this mix of art and entrepreneurship very interesting and current nowadays. Another highlight is Matthew Plummer-Fernandez’s work Shiv Integer. He is using bots to create new forms of art, while challenging the conventions of ownership, authorship and distribution of artwork. Harry Sanderson’s work has also caught my attention; I actually didn’t know him before, while I’ve previously worked with both Lawrence and Matthew. What attracts me about Harry’s work is the capability to transform technology (code) into a stunning material experience (a sculpture) that speaks to me so much about the state of technology in our culture and how we might not see the implications unless we point at this technology with ‘light’ (critical thinking).

Above: The participants of the MV Works programme, photo by Leon Chew Below 1: Estela Oliva, photo by Paco Diaz, 2: The details for the final showcase.