Chris Tavares Silva

First art memory?
In second grade my friend Jesse Greathead came up with this cartoon character named "Super Dope" and we used to collaborate on drawings of him. He was a heavy-lidded little guy with a classic burnout hairdo and the Superman shield on his chest, but instead of just an "S" it said "LSD". Strange that the teacher never asked about it. I don't know if I even knew what LSD was when we were doing that, and I had no idea to ask where Jesse came up with the whole concept of the character. I'm very thankful to have had a friend named Jesse Greathead. Now I'm wondering if any of that really happened. If my mom remembers the pet rat named Seymour that I borrowed from him then I'll know Jesse was real.

Favorite install (either of yours or someone elses)?
Man, that's a hard one. Seems like amazing new installations are popping up every week. I'm super into the installations of Tadashi Kawamata. Very similarly, I really liked that one of Doris Salcedo's where she stacked up hundreds of chairs in the empty space between two buildings. I really like the idea of just rearranging and re-contextualizing objects to create interesting spectacles.

Does music influence your work /anything youre particularly drawn to lately?
I probably can't stress enough how important music is to me. Some of my processes of visual art-making would have been too tedious to tolerate if music weren't a solid foundation of the work environment. And because music is so seductive it's been making my investment in visual practices challenging since I know that working with sound is such a good time. Music is the main reason I haven't been as active making visual art this past few years. The move to Puerto Rico was almost entirely motivated by the fact that I would finally have time to pay more attention to the music equipment which my visual art career wasn't allowing me any time for. But music and art have actually been mutually beneficial. They're both integral parts of who I am and they give each other nice breaks so that once I'm ready to put one down for a while then I'm excited to pick the other up again. But neither of them seem to be allowing me enough time to go play skateboards. I guess music and art can be real dicks sometimes.

Lately I've been into a bunch of bands that seem influenced by 90s hip-hop production. Super tight, in the pocket, groove oriented compositions, but played by musicians rather than programmed by producers. The Budos Band, El Michels Affair, Menahan Street Band, Clutchy Hopkins. I always seem to have a bunch of old-school reggae and rock-steady albums in heavy rotation. That last album by Tortoise was super inspiring to me too. Also been listening to Mulatu Astatke & The Heliocentrics, Weird War, Ratatat, Natural Self...The Sea & Cake is another all time favorite group that creeps in an out of my playlists frequently.

Favorite part of the creative process?
I really like moving things around and discovering interesting relationships between elements. That's a part of the creative process that I can do without music, unless of course music is what I'm working on. And since I prefer to work with found/discarded objects, the time spent outside collecting those objects is very enjoyable. The extra physicality of working large is nice and I'm looking forward to doing more of that in the future. Just figuring out solutions to the problems I invent is usually a good time.

Thing you miss most/least about Chicago?
Most would be that lovely, wide variety of fine cuisines...and just diversity in general. And of course real winters is what I miss the least. I'm skinny so that cold gets into these bones quick.

Biography
I am a passionate individual trying to live a life that gives priority to following my creative muse while contributing positively to the evolution of the collective. I see art as a way of thinking and acting in the world rather than merely a stylistic or material practice. I am concerned with how people relate to the self, to each other and to their environment. I am saddened by cruelty, xenophobia and greed. I aim to give artistic presence to my humanity and concern.

I am interested in the visually poetic, employ ambiguity in my work and strive to express the essence rather than the details. I see opportunities in accidents, enjoy unusual combinations of materials, the unpredictable outcomes of collaboration and the general adventure of the creative process.

I believe that collective consciousness is infinitely more important than individual ego. My priority as an artist is not to receive accolades and praise for my talents, but rather to inspire others to help to create a just and meaningful world. I am more interested in seeing what “we” can do than showing what “I” can do.

www.chrissilva.com

five by Max Kauffman