London-based Rowan Corr's early work on fashion editorials and lookbooks, shot almost entirely on film, is a far cry from the slick still lifes he creates using high-end digital equipment today. Corr graduated from London College of Fashion, but it was his time working for Mr Porter and Burberry that set him on track for his current contemporary approach. For Wallpaper’s December 2021 issue, Corr turned his analytical eye to tech, creating a conceptual visual response to our story on the rise of the home robot.
Wallpaper*: Describe your style and process
Rowan Corr: I would describe my work as clean, sharp and abstract, but also completely real. Recently, I’ve been treating my work as more of an investigation into an object: its form and texture and how it interacts with the space and colours that surround it. It’s literal, it’s graphic and there is a formula to it, but I always try to consider each piece individually so that each photo takes on its own identity.
Robotic still lifes, created for wallpaper’s December 2021 issue. Google Nest Cam, £90, Amazon Echo Dot (4th generation), £50
W*: Tell us about how you brought your way of working to our home robots story
RC: This was a cool concept to interpret as we increasingly live our lives at home surrounded by these ‘smart’ tech devices. For this piece, I wanted to shoot them in an abstract yet minimal setting whilst subtly inserting other objects from the home to allude to the idea of surveillance. I applied my prescribed style, but I also wanted to use light to emphasise something sinister about the objects. The devices are almost silhouettes, but we see their lights are on and we know they’re listening.
W*: What do you think is the most interesting thing happening in photography now?
RC: Continuing on the topic of artificial intelligence, I’m interested in seeing how its role within photography grows. For example, software that uses AI to upscale images. Capabilities like that were unimaginable to me when I started out.
In the same vein, I’m more and more interested in CGI, the sophistication of animations and renders built using software like Cinema 4D and Unreal Engine, and how it continues to advance. My work takes inspiration from CGI renders; looking at a hyper-real image and not knowing how it was produced is something that interests me, and has brought me to the place I am at now in my process.
Google Nest Cam, £90, Pierre Charpin lamp for Hay
W*: What’s on your radar?
RC: Kit Grill’s latest album Fragile has been on heavy rotation recently.
W*: What’s next for you this year?
RC: I feel like this year is wrapping up, but in the meantime, I’d love to see my work in a new context and start experimenting with different print processes. Most of my work focuses on picking up tiny details, so it would be great to work with scale and see how far I can push it.
Who knows what will present itself in 2022, but I’m looking forward to finding out.
Spillage
Leaf
INFORMATION
-
Find yourself at Six Senses Kyoto, the brand's breathtaking Japan debutSix Senses Kyoto opens its doors boasting tranquil, luxurious interiors by Blink Design Group
-
Shigeru Ban’s mini Paper Log House welcomed at The Glass House'Shigeru Ban: The Paper Log House' is shown at The Glass House in New Canaan, USA as the house museum of American architect Philip Johnson plays host to the Japanese architect’s model temporary home concept
-
Artist Mickalene Thomas wrestles with notions of Black beauty, female empowerment and love'Mickalene Thomas: All About Love’, a touring exhibition, considers Black female representation
-
Felicia Honkasalo on creative obsessions, gothic horror, and the sci-fi world of AI photographyExplore the vision of Helsinki-based artist Felicia Honkasalo in ‘Through the lens’, our monthly series spotlighting photographers who are Wallpaper* contributors
-
Cyprien Gaillard on chaos, reorder and excavating a Paris in fluxWe interviewed French artist Cyprien Gaillard ahead of his major two-part show, ‘Humpty \ Dumpty’ at Palais de Tokyo and Lafayette Anticipations (until 8 January 2023). Through abandoned clocks, love locks and asbestos, he dissects the human obsession with structural restoration
-
Year in review: top 10 art interviews of 2022, chosen by Wallpaper* arts editor Harriet Lloyd-SmithTop 10 art interviews of 2022, as selected by Wallpaper* arts editor Harriet Lloyd-Smith, summing up another dramatic year in the art world
-
Yayoi Kusama on love, hope and the power of artThere’s still time to see Yayoi Kusama’s major retrospective at M+, Hong Kong (until 14 May). In our interview, the legendary Japanese artist vows to continue to ‘create art to leave the message of “love forever”’
-
Antony Gormley interview: ‘We’re at more than a tipping point. We’re in a moment of utter crisis’We visit the London studio of British sculptor Antony Gormley ahead of his major new show ‘Body Field’ at Xavier Hufkens Brussels
-
Photographer Maisie Cousins on nostalgia, impulsive making and ‘collecting useless things’Explore the vision of British artist Maisie Cousins in ‘Through the lens’, our monthly series spotlighting photographers who are Wallpaper* contributors
-
Rashid Johnson in Menorca: a journey through migration, longing and togethernessWe visited Rashid Johnson’s Brooklyn studio ahead of the artist’s show at Hauser & Wirth Menorca, which contemplates drift – physical and emotional
-
Step inside the kaleidoscopic universe of Pipilotti RistSwiss artist Pipilotti Rist, who headlines Wallpaper’s November 2022 issue, has transformed the way we see, with a poetic yet playful practice spanning three decades. Here, and in a special portfolio, she reveals how she has liberated video art from its conventions, imbued the digital realm with emotion, animated public spaces, and harnessed the healing powers of colour
