#012 — Closure

終結

The twelfth issue—aptly titled Closure—marks the end of our journey in magazine format. Instead of presenting a conventional best of compilation or promising new beginnings, we have chosen to delve into the theme of Closure with all its nuances. This issue is not merely a farewell to Whitelies in magazine form—it’s an opportunity for us to uphold our commitments and values to the highest standard. It goes beyond being just a goodbye—it is a visual expression of the beauty in Closure—a celebration of parting, and an embrace of states of mourning.

In our latest release Lena C. Emery presents us with a story drawn from an excerpt of her forthcoming book “I Undressed to Climb a Tree” (2024). Olivier Kervern immortalizes moments that have passed. Stanislas Motz-Neidhart captures Sahteene Sednaoui in a story rich in symbolism. Stephane Sednaoui—on the other hand—has contributed a personal and tragic series titled “Sombre” (2023). In our ongoing collaboration with CHANEL, we focus on the Fall-Winter 2023/24 Haute Couture collection—a presentation that unfolded with Chanel Artistic Director Virginie Viard’s portrayal of leisurely, Parisian life along the Seine in the height of summer.

Osamu Yokonami engages with the solitude, anonymity and restlessness that characterizes sprawling mega-metropolises. Beyond the frenetic heart of Tokyo, Jun Yasui has created a story inspired by the concept of the Sanzu-no-Kawa. Robert Mapplethorpe’s printer Tom Baril graces this issue with his series “Botanic”. In these images, he celebrates the transient and ephemeral qualities shared by both life and nature. Photographer Mengyu Zhou offers a glimpse into her personal series “The Filial Daughter”, captured earlier this year in her hometown Wenzhou, China, while Belgian artist Katrien de Blauwer appears in Whitelies once again with a suite of her distinctive collages, selected from her larger body of work “Why I Fear Red, Love Blue (and) Hate Yellow” (2022).

#011 — Identity

身元

Why do we build Identities? In which instances are they expressions of passion and belonging, in which instances are they a spawn of fear? We are grateful to have had the chance to explore the theme of Identity from a great number of different voices and positions within the pages of this issue.

In “Shadows in the Network” C.J. Gartillou & Tam Mei Lin consider “shadow children”, a societally marginalised people barred from national identification, and with it, employment, travel, education, healthcare. Musical legend Terry Riley shares with us the spiritual and ethical dimensions of his work and outlook. Kiko Mizuhara & Yoon Ahn discuss the particularities of being ethnically Korean and working in the cultural industries in Japan. Photographer Zhong Lin reinterprets Satoshi Kons’ animation “Perfect Blue”, a story about a youth pop idol who is attempting to shed this image for that of a serious actress.

The issue is opened and closed by the deeply intimate work of Nobuyoshi Araki’s protégé Sakiko Nomura, and features further photographic works by the likes of Takashi Homma, Bennie Gay, Chan Rim, Juliette Abitbol & Edouard Sanville, and Chan Wai Kwong, to name but a few.

We are also thrilled to re-print Amanda Lee Koe’s titillating Singapore-based short story “Pawn”, which charts the relationship between people from different cultural worlds, a collision also present in Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook’s work “Two Planets”, as is discussed by Sandy Yu. Last but not least, we explore expressions of cultural and individual identity in food with a statement by chef Anaïs Ca Dao van Manen; a quarantine food diary by Zoe Suen; and a personal essay on language and a sweet tooth by Elaine Tam.

#010 — Patience

忍 耐

Where would we be if not for the virtue of patience, that led so many great minds to persist in shaping culture and history in the long run?

We present this issue as a meditation on taking a breath and overcoming our short-term thinking. Bonsai-expert Werner Busch invites us into his museum to talk about never-ending pieces of art, Cho Gi Seok dives into the sensation of holding your breath, Nicole Maria Winkler explores how bodies shift shape during pregnancy, Shintaro Sakamoto looks back onto a long career of shaping his genre, Mirai Moriyama gives us a rare insight into his world, William Forsythe gets technical and Acte TM literally encourages us to wait. New beginnings sometimes require action, and sometimes they require us to stand still. We invite you to slow down your life with us in this issue of Whitelies Magazine.

#009 — Permanence

永 続 性

We go through life in different states of perceived permanence, every once in a while connecting with something new, imagining that it’s entered our world for good. A new passion, a new love. In these moments we suppress the thought of ephemerality.

On an intellectual level, we know nothing is permanent — everything is constantly shifting, changing, whirling around. But is that the case for emotions? There is a theory that emotions don’t change, that they are permanent and just keep getting layered over by different ones. What’s certainly enduring is what we carry within: an eternal love for the universe. The tao. God. Whatever you want to call the thing we cannot name. Our one-ness. Its defining characteristic is that everything is connected, everything is interdependent and constantly in flux. In a way, we can say that the very notion of perpetual change in our universe, is the most permanent thing there is.

Exploring the theme of Permanence from different angles, Jun Takahashi of Undercover invites us into his inner sanctum in Tokyo, Lena C. Emery speculates about the futures of cities, Richie Hawtin takes us on an emotional journey into his world of saké, Jason Evans brings us Matsutake mushroom hunting in the mountains of Oregon, USA, Izumi Kato & Masato Kobayashi discuss their visions of permanence, Stephane Sednaoui embarks on a rich and eventful artistic odyssey alongside beautiful contributions by Osamu Yokonami, Erika Kamano, Bennie Julian Gay, Sophie Tajan, Anna Sinofzik and many more. While most of the world looks at what is currently changing in this global whirlwind of events, we are focusing on what stays — on what is permanent.

#008 — Utopia

ユートピア

There are two false meanings of Utopia — one is the notion of imagining an ideal society that we know will never be realised, the other is the aspirational capitalist Utopia that you are not only forbidden nor even able to realise. Isnʼt the true Utopia a situation so without issue that we donʼt feel the need to talk about it?

We are in the beginnings of the COVID-19 crisis, where things happen that would have seemed impossible a few weeks ago. Most borders on the globe are closed, entire economic systems have shut down and the sheer helplessness of established structures to sustain us in the face of a pandemic has become alarmingly apparent. There is no better time for utopian ideas — because as Oscar Wilde put it: “Progress is the realisation of Utopias”. It’s time to seriously discuss universal basic incomes and open borders — because we have seen that our current systems are failing us — now more than ever.

#007 — Transformation

変 身

We live in a constant state of change, even though we don’t always notice it. Our beliefs and the power division in the world seem like something that will never change, even though a brief glimpse onto our history shows us that the world has always been in a constant transformation and there is no reason that it should stop now.

However we need to take our eyes off the changes in the outer world and focus on transformations within. We are always just one decision away from an entirely different life. We might think that some things within ourselves take a long time to change — but the actual change is happening within a split second, you are just working towards making that decision happen for a longer time. If we meditate about that we find that change is always possible, an entirely different life is possible within a second. Nothing is static. Personal transformation can and does have global effects. As we go, so goes the world, for the world is us the revolution that will save the world is ultimately a personal one. As Walter Gropius once said: “What we need is the courage to have inner experience. Let us celebrate the beauty of transformation.”

#006 — Failure

失 敗

The sweetest victory is the one that’s hardest to achieve, the one that requires you to reach down deep inside — without knowing if your effort will be enough. Society doesn’t reward defeat, and you won’t find many failures documented in history books. However, this might be the most interesting time to seriously think about failure.

But what is Failure — isn’t it just a term to judge encounters that we don’t feel positive about? It’s all a matter of perspective — as Thomas Alva Edison said: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10.000 ways that won’t work.” Failure is part of the process of success. People who avoid failure also avoid success — it is a Yin & Yang. Opposite forces that are actually complementary and interconnected.

We talked to a lot of inspiring people about the meaning of Failure, how to make use of it and where it can lead you. Actors Rebecca Hall and Charlie R. Heaton share some insights about their lives, gallerist Johann König investigates failure with artist duo Michael Elmgreen & Ingar Dragset, Bill Kaulitz speaks up and Chris Maggio gives us a good look at the current state of America. Without continuing too far down the existential route, at the end of life there is death. Or as we could call it: “a biological failure”. After all, we are designed to fail. It’s only natural.

#005 — Hunger

飢 え

The current state of our society is branded with hunger. We don’t want comfort. We want to live, we want poetry, we want real danger, we want freedom, we want to rebel, we want goodness, we want sin and we want salvation. We are never satisfied.

Deep inside however we know that true happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have. The greatest blessings of mankind in fact are within us and within our reach. Socrates told us centuries ago that: “He who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have.” Yet, the hunger of an artist is infinite.

With this issue of Whitelies Magazine we shed light on the topic of Hunger from all directions, the positive and the negative. Andreas Murkudis talks about the current retail landscape, Odile Decq shows us the necessity of a hungry young generation, Anna Sinofzik experiences the results of a greedy America and Hermann Nitsch talks about the concepts of construction and demolition.
We see red. Stay hungry.

#004 — Hedonism

快楽主義

The word “hedonism” has its source in ancient Greek as a term for “pleasure”. The psychological philosophy behind claims “that only pleasure or pain motivates us”. Each of us is always motivated to maximize what we take to be our own good, plus the claim that we each accept that our good is our maximal or sufficient balance of pleasure over displeasure. Technically speaking: society is built on a hedonist structure which claims that all and only pleasure has positivie importance and all and only pain or displeasure has negative importance.

Nowadays however “well-being” is becoming the “new hedonism”. Those in the know are swapping boozy breaks for healthy holidays and drugs for meditation. We go on holiday now to do things rather than spending all day recovering from the night before. In a sense we have learned how to balance out pleasure and pain to achieve longer lasting stable joy. Inner pleasure defeats superficial pleasure.

With this issue of Whitelies Magazine we drown in the world of pleasure and the senses, chat with Henrik Purienne and Massimo Leardini about the aesthetics of desire, dive into the world of Beverly Hills with Brad Elterman, experience architecture with Claude Parent and check in with Cicciolina to see how she is holding up in Rome. Hedonism is multi-facetted and we should all find the right way to embrace it — or as Rita Mae Brown put it: “I finally figured out the only reason to be alive is to enjoy it.”

#003 — Artisan

職人

The industry has operated against the artisan in favor of the idler — in favor of capital and against labor. Any mechanical invention whatsoever has been more harmful to humanity than a century of war. Our initial values are getting compromised on a daily basis, it’s nearly impossible to not get involved with something morally vague.

The systems we invented in good faith to bring humanity a step forward have gotten out of control and are turning against us with intense speed and pressure. To quote the Shawshank Redemption: “the world went and got itself in a big damn hurry.”

In this issue of Whitelies Magazine we are incredibly happy to give you the opportunity to read the words of avant-gardist and recycling fashion pioneer Geoffrey B. Small. We talk to Iris van Herpen on her approach to artisanry and how to use modern day technology to enhance craftmanship, photographer Sébran d’Argent takes us on a journey to Ladakh and we call artist Paul Kremer fat.