- Tell us about yourself.
I am Adam Detre – I have studied art at a Foundation level in the UK
I am a self-taught carpenter and sculptor. Generally work in 3D or relief.
Currently work mainly in Wood or clay.
Have worked in plaster, stone and cast resins
- Tell us about you and Atmosphere Resorts & Spa.
I worked at Atmosphere for almost 7 years. Started as the Dive Center Manger and finished as their General Manager.
I am currently the Artist in Residence for the Resort charged with creating an installation piece for their new restaurant – Breeze.
- How did you develop or think of this particular piece?
Simplicity in Motion #8 - LUNAR in its three stages of light
One evening, during the latter stages of construction, I was sitting on a chair as the moon rose in front of me. From what I remember, and with a little poetic licence, I think it was a waning crescent moon, the basis around the idea came to me.
Honestly, it was a genuine EUREKA moment but, very quickly, I had an image in my head as to how I could offer an interpretation of the moon, its phases and their collective cycle. This is became Simplicity in Motion #8 – LUNAR.
I sketched a few bits and pieces and then started on a series of 3D studies to understand what I could achieve. I am always learning techniques as I go and refining my skills but that, for me, is where I glean a huge amount of pleasure.
The wall is – 8.4m x 3.5m. The piece would need to have a strong presence for it to be significant. I wanted to base the work on something large.
I have lived in Dauin for 8.5 years and had always loved how the moon rose from behind Siquijor – the island opposite. The rising of the moon can often be as much of a spectacle as the rising of the sun. Sadly it is rarely recognised with the same fervour. I still remember watching the moon rise in Eastern Kazakhstan in 2008 on my way to Mongolia in an old Vauxhal Corsa. It was a huge full moon, so bright that we assumed that the hue that preceded it was man made. A strong punctuation mark on my life.
One of the pleasures of living in an area for long enough is to start to understand nature – the seasons, the expected and unexpected changes, how the phases of the moon look at certain times of the year. It is quite hard and honestly, often given little relevance, to be ‘in tune’ with nature’s circadian rhythms.
I have always been fascinated by circles - yes, a strange statement to make but it is true - and they had a strong baring on this series of work. Their shape, the variations on the same theme and also the patterns that you can make using interacting curvi-linear forms.
Once I get an idea in my head, it whirls and whirls around until I start making it. It does become a bit of a fixation. My fiancée and my friends often joke at how I will stare at photos of works in progress or intangible abstract items. I can’t help it. I suppose it is a borderline obsession but without the negative connotations.
- How do you select materials?
This is quite tricky. I REALLY do not like to cut trees down and so far I have not done so. I am proud of what I do and consider my work to be an embellishment of what is already naturally very beautiful. Carving wood is a privilege and so I actively feel the need to ensure that I honour the material.
How do I select my materials? In the past, I have ‘foraged’ for chunks of tree or been given old pieces from construction sites. People have come to know me for this and so every now and then someone would approach me if there was a tree or branch lying around. By the beginning of 2019, I had accumulated a cache of gemelina (Philippine beech) and Philippine Mahogany BUT, I had always wanted to work in Acacia. Timing was on my side.
In August 2019, I was told about an old Acacia tree that had been cut down to allow for some development – I suppose we call this ‘progress’. Heartbreaking in one breath but also an opportunity with the next breath. It is a small world out here so it turns out I tenuously knew the owner and agreed to buy the tree. A VERY long story short and after many let downs, frustrations and a huge amount of sweat (and NO BLOOD), with the help of an amenable but not too amenable licenced chainsaw operator, I was able to process this glorious tree into large discs. Each piece took 4-5 men to struggle to lift them. Cranes, forklifts, general machinery were not available or non-existent. We got it done.
How do I select my materials? I’ll answer the question now. In this instance, I very much feel like they selected me.
There was a nice twist at the end of this part of the story. Having got to know eachother a little bit, on the last day before we left, the owner asked if I wanted to meet his ancestor who had planted the tree. I immediately agreed. I felt it was right to pay homage in some way. This particular ancestor had planted a huge number of acacia trees in the area including that one that had been cut down. We went to visit his grave which, fittingly was in the shade of a few other acacia trees and so I stayed there for a while and explained that I would work hard to honour his memory and help to continue his legacy by creating something beautiful from the tree he had planted. My father had passed away a month earlier and so it was a deeply poignant moment for me filled with genuine emotion and galvanising the strongest sense of determination and self-belief that I had felt for quite some time. I miss my Dad. He loved woodwork, respected craftsmanship and perhaps imbued some of his interest in me. This piece, however it manifested itself, suddenly had a broader personal meaning to me. My dad would have LOVED to have seen it. I would have loved for him to have seen it.
- Tell us about PAJA?
PAJA is the Finnish word for workshop.
The principle of PAJA, as an organisation, is to form a working spaces for creatives – preferably those who work in 3D or need larger working spaces. PAJA wants to be able to create an environment to nurture micro-communities where the individuals’ goals can be mutually aligned to a collective goal.
- When did you become an artist?
Erm. Honestly. I find the term hard to qualify. A very successful artist fried prefers to use the term ‘Maker’. I am not sure. If I was being cheesy then I might suggest that it is something one is born with. I think I have had the opportunity to explore creativity with more focus over the last few years.
- What inspires and motivates you?
Inspires? EVERYTHING. I am genuinely curious and interested in everything. Through the means of creation I am able to explore almost everything and offer an interpretation of anything.
Motivates? Once I have an idea and the materials. It is a need and desire that drives me to attempt to create it.
- What advice can you give to beginning artists?
I am no genius. I am not the best sculptor in the world and I am definitely not the most technically able. I’ll sound like a school teacher here BUT, apply yourself. IF you genuinely want to create then create. The more you work the better you are at each stage of the process. Make sure you enjoy it. If you are not enjoying then at least try to learn. Make sure you spend time with and without. If you like circles then study them. If you like the colour blue then play with it.
- Where are you based?
PAJA (and I) currently have 3 workshops. One in the Central Visayas in the Philippines, one in London which was my Dad’s shed in a previous life and one outside of Turku in Finland. In 2020 I will be split between UK and Finland. I will also be the Fiskars Artist in Residence towards the end of 2020.
- What style of art would you classify your work?
I have to admit that I am not completely sure.
Abstract, Modern, Minimal, Sculpture. I love the principles of the Impressionist – the idea of capturing a moment is a wonderful thing.
I draw strongest influences from nature, geometry and repetitive patterns.