Art & Life with Asia Kepka

Today we’d like to introduce you to Asia Kepka.

Asia Kepka, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
When I was born I was so ugly my grandmother cried. She was Polish – blunt and direct even in most delicate moments. True Pole. Despite my grandmother’s fears years later I walked runway for Ford Models in Boston, wore amazing gowns and got to hang out with Mohamed Ali.

Upon arriving in US, I was given small point and shoot camera. I still remember that hot August day in 1990 at JFK and being greeted by total strangers who later became my second family.” Take photos so you can document your time here”. Two years later I won green card lottery and was enrolled at The New England School of Photography in Boston. Shortly after graduation I started shooting for Wired, Fortune, Time. I was traveling cross country having a blast – one day shooting Yoyo Ma, another day Bill Gates. I had no idea what I was doing but pretended I was a real photographer. My camera was either 4×5 or 8×10. Making things simple was never my goal- sometimes you will see me on a crane with 8×10 alongside scared assistant processing my large format polaroid’s, another time shooting 4×5 at football game feeling like I was in a middle of bullfight being knocked around like a ball. Another scared assistant next to me. BTW- those assistants are still my best friends.

In recent years I crossed over to dark side and switched my trusty old large format cameras for digital SLR’s. A new world opened. At least once a year I produce, direct, shoot music video. My background of set design and dress making comes in very handy. I’ve constructed gigantic black and white circus tent in my attic, created crazy gowns, space suits, shot underwater…Each project is new challenge and I take it with enthusiasm.

Aside from commercial work I work on long term personal projects. “Bridget and I ” was a decade long series of large format self-portraits created with my mannequin Bridget. “Horace and Agnes- A Love Story ” is a midcentury modern romance about love and friendship. Again, those are self-portraits. This time I’m running around in squirrel mask wearing polyester and realizing I’ve turned into my mother. And no, my mom does not wear rubber masks or polyester suits.

Can you give our readers some background on your art?
Eclectic is the best word to describe what I do. One day you will find me shredding yards of fabric into strips to later construct a gown that will flow in a wind in my video. another day I pose with mannequin, dressed in vintage clothes on a windy beach and walk back in time to 40ties and 50ties connecting to stories of my grandmother who survived war with three children, a widow, immigrant trying to start new life, surviving and overcoming challenges every day.

My inspiration is life – my own and people close to me. It’s personal. I never thought my project “Bridget and I “will take me on a journey to examine who I am. Over time it became my visual journey through which I was exploring my now life- past and present; as a woman, as an immigrant; roles I was supposed to take on and failed. I was able to connect to stories of my grandmother, mother… This decade long project was also about death. I lost many close people, too soon. Some of the photos allowed me to process death in a cathartic way. Not making peace but helped me express many feelings that put my life to screeching halt.

At the end of that journey, when I felt the project was finished and I was ready to take new journey I created last photograph called ” The Last Supper”. So appropriate for ex nun want to be.

My big inspiration are movies. Few changed me as an artist. After seeing ” The Cook, The Thief His Wife and Her Lover ” I was blown away by the power of visuals and music in a movie. Krzysztof Kieslowski- Polish director is my all-time favorite. His movies tell incredibly intimate stories not just through great scripts and great acting by incredibly creative way of shooting. It seems his movies have multi-level worlds- music, imagery flows intertwined, so naturally.

Not sure if I mentioned my partner of seven years that became my partner in crime. One day I came to her house and asked her to put on a rubber mask of a horse. I wore squirrel mask. She thought it was strange but it was a hot July evening and she was making dinner so she obliged. Later I asked her to name the characters. She was good at writing stories, naming things… few months later Horace and Agnes was raging with popularity- we got big museum show at the griffin Museum of Photography. Two years later we signed book deal with Penguin. Little that I knew when I met and photographed “Deviance Code “author Dan Brown and said to him ” when I grow up I want to be like you, I would be signed by his agency shortly after… I guess you just never know. Lynn and I worked hard and are so proud to see our book at Momma and hear from folks across the world how much they enjoy our little story. Art can cross borders and communicate without speaking same language. I will never forget lady on top of Mont Blanc speaking in French pouring over every single page of the book and connecting to it with so much enthusiasm. Being an artist is not profitable sometimes but it sure makes you feel rich in so many ways. Important ways.

What responsibility, if any, do you think artists have to use their art to help alleviate problems faced by others? Has your art been affected by issues you’ve concerned about?
I never thought artists role is insignificant. As someone who grew up in Poland I was aware of incredible role arts played in preserving our identity and pride during times when Poland didn’t exist on map of the world. We were occupied by other countries for 100 years and it was up to artists to give us hope. Chopin was one of them. His work gave his voice when we were voiceless. Even this I grew up poor – art was always accessible and important.

It is sad to see some in US think of art as elitist. These days I’ve returned to making art that expresses my political voice. I was part of group show at 13Forest Gallery in Arlington in January 2017 called ” Transition of Power”. It was great opportunity to reflect and express myself in ways I have not before.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.asiakepka.com ; www.horaceandagnes.com
• Email: asiakepka@gmail.com
• Instagram: asiakepka
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/asiakepka

Image Credit:
asia kepka

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