About
Homepage → Andy Maticorena Kajie
Andy Maticorena Kajie (b. Peru 2001) is a photo-based interdisciplinary artist and researcher who holds a BFA in Photography & Video from the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York City. His work primarily focuses on the ephemeral relationship between photographic theory, memory, and intimate relationship dynamics.
Andy has exhibited work in New York City and New Jersey, including two solo exhibitions; selection for the School of Visual Arts BFA Photography and Video department Mentors 2023 exhibition, as well as L.A. Photo Curator’s Top 40 Images of 2021.
He is currently pursuing an MFA at the University of Michigan.
First and foremost, it’s a true pleasure to have you here today. Your work has had a profound impact on me, and I’m particularly excited about your new series, 'I (Want to) Love You in Fringes.' What sparked the idea for this project, and how did it evolve into what it is today?
I like to think of this body of work as an ongoing development of my undergraduate thesis work going into my masters thesis. Originally the work was about various mental health stigmas and struggles, but over time, it became more about the physicality of the object I am creating, along-side the further theoretical implications of photography and how it exist within relationship dynamics. Particularly intimate romantic, and familial relationships.
i (want to) love you in fringes explores the disconnect between photographic interpretation and relation, from person to person, or from person to place. If you wanted to dilute the project to its pure essence, it is about breakups.
That’s quite insightful, and it’s new information for me. How did this influence the way you approached the photography in your series?
They are presented in a variety of forms, ranging from different types of sculptures to traditionally framed
Your process is so distinctive. Can you dive deeper into your creative process and how you bring your ideas to life?
I like to describe the way I make images as an extension of the photographic unconscious. Greatly inspired by Graciela Iturbide's role of the dream in her work, I (try to) make photographs that are an extension of my subconscious. I photograph with feeling instead of objectively most of the time, usually aimlessly and without a clear objective. I think this allows me to be surprised by the things I find and the interactions I participate in. The photographic process isn't particularly delicate either. If something makes me feel anything, I will photograph it, and forget about it.
I also tend to spend a portion of time away from the images I make, anywhere from a month to half a year, pondering, looking, getting excited about, promptly forgetting, and repeat. Until I think it is time to finally put them into any given container of project/sculpture I am drafting at the time. Intuition is king when objectivity is secondary, and i think that's where the magic of the photograph happens for me. It is a special thing to be surprised in real life, and it is even more difficult to photograph it, and I think it only gets more difficult (for me) when I try to objectively create surprises. I don't like staging any of my work because the mystifying nature of photography dies at that moment. And so much of the theory I am interested in is about the surprise, and unpredictability of the medium. Particularly in the role that choice plays in photography. Even when we make choices on what to photograph, we can never fulfill those decisions because of the flaws imbedded into the medium.
Then, I make sculptures. Lately they have been varying from weird leaking kinetic sound sculptures to repurposed objects. Most notably however, I make large-scale photosculptures. These are a form of collage in which I print anywhere from 2-6 photographs dismember them with sulfuric acid, and then reconstruct them with medical tape and thread. The sulfuric acid makes it so that the photographs keep disintegrating at the edges long after the initial piece is complete, making them kinetic in nature. They dance with time and fall apart before your very eyes. It is a beautiful thing to see your work collapse in a similar way to how memory deteriorates. I am still figuring this out during my MFA but I think I am getting closer to what I want out of them.
Going back to the beginning, how were you first introduced to photography?
In high school, my best friend at the time was an amateur photographer who did a lot of urbex stuff and adventuring. I was a shy, sort of fed up graphic designer who was tired at looking at screens. We went to New York City one day with two cameras and that's where it all started.
What place does analog photography occupy in your life? Is it part of your work or more of a hobby?
Analog photography is probably the single largest element/driving force of my creative practice. All of my work (including sculptural and kinetic) has its foundation within the realm of analog photo-based practice.
I always have a film camera on me, I feel incomplete without it. Even in my professional editorial work, analog photography is my tool of choice given there is a budget for it.
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Tell us about the equipment you use. Where did it come from, and what does the camera you use represent to you?
I currently use a Fuji GSW690III and a Konica Hexar AF. Love both of these cameras but they are nothing special. I think people should shoot with the gear they enjoy to use.
Have you come across any particular film that surprised you? Do you have a favorite film, and if so, what makes it special to you?
I love Cinestill 400D because of its very impressive dynamic range. It can be pushed very far in post and has incredible latitude for editing. Otherwise, I will use any film really. I had a brief honeymoon with expired Ektachrome (100 Plus, 64T, 160T, 100GX) but the film that is out there is becoming more and more unreliable and I'd rather not take the risk while I am working on my masters thesis.
How do you engage with the film development or enlargement process?
Due to the scale of my work, all of my printing is archival inkjet. However, I do have plans to make a short print run of 16x20 black and white fiber prints in the near future.
Do you still photograph in digital format?
Occasionally, I have a fuji x10 that I think is cute, but it is not my go to by any means. I am using a digital camera it is either for commercial work or video.
Are there any artists, not necessarily in the realm of photography, who have left a significant impact on your life and work?
Recently have really loved the work of Igor Posner, Mitologia Reversa, Alberto Di Lenardo, and Moyra Davey to name a few. Graciela Iturbide has always been an inspiration as well, and the late Abby Robinson made probably the largest impact on my throughout my academic journey. Outside of photography I really love Ambera Wellman, Joan Jonas, and Lynn Hershman Leeson.
We're grateful you could join us, Andy. For more of his incredible work, follow him on Instagram at @andy.kajie.