Jan Philipzen is a German artist and Musician working in Belgium
Episode 190: I caught up with German artist and musician Jan Philipzen to speak about his killer book Ravedeath Convention published by Art Paper Editions.
In the episode, Jan and I spoke about a number of different things that pertain to his practice both as a visual artist and a musician. We explored some of the themes in his excellent Ravedeath Convention book published by APE. I had also already fallen into a deep appreciation of Jan’s music before our conversation, so our talk was quite lively and animated. As someone deeply invested in music, it is always a distinct pleasure to speak with another artist interested in more than one medium.
I have included the Bandcamp link above so that you may peruse Jan’s musical output. I hope to do something on his music here at some point very soon. To say Jan’s output is prodigious is an understatement.
Throughout the conversation, we spoke about Jan’s background, his education, but also where he has made photographs that appear in the book from Germany to Islington, London. There is a bit of a funny part of the dialogue in which we explore a particular image made off Essex Road that will be familiar to any North Londoner. between Islington and Wood Green.
I find Jan and his work deeply engaging. I love the raw nature of the material and his ability to create an atmosphere of DIY in the work. There is an atmospheric effect in the work that feels in praise of youthful abandonment but pulls back just in time to give the work something more universal-a slice of time in the present condition of urban living that reads as something looming and larger than just being about youth. Please Tune In. I expect great things from Jan on both the music and photography fronts.
