Interview with Artist, Curator and Activist Ally Zlatar

Exploring art-making as a methodology that suggests the human condition is more complex than it is currently understood. Ally Zlatar examines, instigates and provokes notions of the individual experience through focusing on the themes of illness, vulnerability, and authenticity of one’s lived-in experience. She utilizes an auto-ethnographic approach to her contemporary figurative painting. Zlatar explores her personal narratives and life experiences to guide her exploration of self-identity and self-perception in our modern discourse. She acknowledges power within the un-well body and believes there is tremendous value and potency by examining it through the contemporary art lens. Born in Mississauga, Canada. She holds a BFA in Visual Art & Art History from Queen’s University & an MLitt Curatorial Practice and Contemporary Art from the Glasgow School of Art. Currently, she is a Lecturer at the University of Glasgow (GIC) and is pursuing her Doctorate of Creative Arts with the University of Southern Queensland. She has been involved in many exhibition creations and personal works shown globally. In her artistic practice, she is continuously interpreting, communicating and facilitating her work to make a difference in society. — Ally Zlatar Original Magazine: Your work is of a personal nature, can you explain to what you mean by ‘utilizing an auto-ethnographic approach’ to your contemporary figure paintings? Ally Zlatar: Autoethnography involves the artist- researcher-practitioner intentionally immersing themselves in theory and practice as a way of gaining insight. For me it means more than being an autobiographical account, as it means to be ‘fully immersed’ in the visual and sensory experience of where the knowledge is uncovered. This approach strives to reassess aspects of human experience best represented by images and writing, and a related analysis of the relationship between the visual and other experiences. O.M: You have painted a multitude of figures within your paintings, are these self-portraits? Or are they figures from your mind or people you know? A.Z: Most of my work is self portraits, or portrayal of self through different characters/ figures. I do also explore fragments of memories where I reflect on my interactions with people and the insights from them. O.M: How important is it for you to express yourself and inform others about perceptions of self-identity that surround eating disorders? A.Z: I think for myself, I wanted to engage with the subject matter since I struggled for a long time with the illness. However, I didn’t realize how important my voice was until I actually started the work. I realize I only could share my experiences, as I genuinely knew what the illness was and the extent it impacted me. My art focuses on how my thoughts, experiences and relationship to my eating disorder can contribute to conversations at large about the illness. What I hope is that it inspires others to share their experiences as eating disorders are so commonly misunderstood. O.M: Are your artworks created sporadically depending on your emotions? Or are they more structured, as if you are battling an internal monologue? A.Z: My art tends to be manifestations, of how I feel. It is almost the output of me trying to comprehend those thoughts/experiences and really contextualize the mental aspect. Sometimes it is sporadic like “I NEED TO MAKE THIS HEARD” or other times it is a quiet voice that underlined my thoughts and slipped it’s way into my art. O.M: Do you think by exploring your methodologies that focuses on the themes of ‘illness, vulnerability, and authenticity of one’s lived-in experience’, is a form of therapy for yourself and audiences who may share the same or similar experiences? A.Z: For me, it’s not a therapy. It does have therapeutic elements of release and coping with the illness but, it is really a visual communication of what endures. I want others to see someone sharing their experience and to relate and realize they are not alone. When someone is suffering from an eating disorder there is a lack of external cultural awareness of the reality of living with the disease. My work provides a comprehensive understanding of the complexities between mind, body, family dynamic, social pressures, cultural norms, and value systems from my artistic and personal understanding. The work is also beneficial to the community as it will help contribute to a greater understanding of eating disorders through artistic perspectives first-hand. O.M: ‘The Starving Artist’ is an incredibly powerful collaborative project that ‘explores our understanding of eating disorders, body image & being unwell within Contemporary Art.’ Can you tell us how this project came to life? A.Z: Initially, it was meant to be a lot smaller scale but, as popularity and interest grew, it allowed me to expand upon my vision. I found that my role existed in between the pages and equally outside of the bounds of the book. My role entailed everything from maintaining communication, negotiating contracts, and writing about art and artists, to studio visits, debating with publication and printing formatting, and brokering relationships. Over the course of the project, I realized that I went above and beyond what I wanted to achieve. I was able to collaborate with such a diverse range of artists and contributors. We created a positive impact on the community, and it reaffirms me to further develop these ideas and various others I have in my curatorial vision. In the larger context of curating, this experience has truly helped me expand my knowledge of the systematic structure of the art world. O.M: Being photographers as well as editors of Original Magazine, we know how hard it can be to curate projects and open calls. How was this curational experience for you? How did it feel bringing this community together? A.Z: From my experience, and mostly as a curator, the labor of curatorial facilitation forges connections between artists, writings, concepts, spaces, organizations, and viewers. These considerations are of course not unique to Eating Disorders or my own curatorial practice. But they require additional urgency here because our art scenes are desperately misunderstood and perceived through a very narrow frame. My curatorial voice comes from a profound understanding of both the illness, philosophical knowledge, and educational institution experience. This combination has led my curatorial voice to be a voice of curation as both thought and action. Curating, it seems to me, might best be understood as a mediator between the public and the art world. Rather than being merely a philosophical voice, curatorial voice has the capacity to participate in cultural discourse. I wanted it to exist in the everyday. The scholarship helped address the subject of publications and bring the works of art to light. I think that in the publication and the scholarship, the artists chosen all cohesively illustrate my vision and create an impactful project. O.M: With your research and methodologies, do you think there is a connection and/or link to contemporary artists and a negative impact on their psychological and emotional wellbeing? A.Z: Honestly, I think mental health impacts us and is not unique to artists. However, artists use their practice to voice their experiences with mental health or often try to cope with their negative emotional wellbeing through art. O.M: And finally, what would you like audiences to know and gain from your projects and personal experiences? A.Z: What I hope for the audience to gain is that art can create a dialogue about what we can learn from eating disorders. I firmly believe that art requires vulnerability to be impactful. Utilizing an autoethnographic art practice in this publication, I strive to through my experiences, stories, and creative manifestations derived from my unwell body. My focus is exploring the internalized and repressed self that can only be uncovered through art, as it is a space of reflection. I hope the audience comprehends the essence of my practice and graciously explore these works. While trying to form a genuine connection to the subject matter; engage with the dark and intense emotions behind the perceived experience and severity of being ill. A massive thank you to Ally for taking the time to speak with us!