Question the World
Japanese tech guy interviews interesting people.
Qanta Shimizu (PARTY NY) is a Japanese creator who in his late-30’s, moved his entire life to New York. This is his monthly interview essay of chats with a different person each time, and thoughts about the Web, digital, with the world as stage.
#4. Rafaël Rozendaal (Internet Visual Artist)
Learning about the meaning of freedom from an Internet-lover
Rafaël Rozendaal is an Internet visual artist who continuously showcases his work through the method of “selling original work in the unit of domains.”
As you will find out in this article, Rafaël is likely to scold me for writing the following, but seeing work such as the hijacking of the New York Times Square with his art, he is undoubtedly one of the most successful Internet artists.
At a Japanese izakaya restaurant in East Village, Rafaël and I had a conversation about our love for the Internet.
As I was writing this article, my social network timelines were bombarded with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics official emblem issue. Needless to say, the issue revolved around accusations of plagiarism in the design, which eventually led to the withdrawal of the emblem.
The whole Japan ceaselessly bashed one artist. A repulsive amount of shout abuse polluted the atmosphere.
This phenomenon wouldn’t have happened if the Internet didn’t exist. Anyone has the freedom to say something. Due to this kind of environment, the Internet became a space for public lynching. I couldn’t care less about the emblem, but the situation where nothing was productive and no one was happy felt so miserable that I nearly started to hate my beloved Internet.
Although I was away from Japan, I was feeling worn out by all this. I thought, “I need my ‘Internet Love’ fix.” Therefore, I called up Rafaël Rozendaal and asked him to chat with me at an izakaya. After all, he is the person with the word “Internet” tattooed inside his lower lip. A hard-core Internet-lover.
So why exactly did Rafaël choose to make Internet-based things in the first place?
“My main strategy is to make many things, and to share them with people.” he replied. During our conversation, the word he would repeat over and over is “hierarchy.”
“There is no hierarchy on the Internet. On the Internet, I don’t think for one second what anybody thinks. We’re very free.”
This is very fundamental. Before the Internet came into existence, if we wanted to show many people something, we were limited to somehow fit it into frameworks such as the TV or magazines.
However, the Internet changed everything. The Internet has no competition, therefore, no hierarchy.
“Some people have the strategy to be very hidden and only speak to certain people. This is more of the classic art world, you have to be friends with the right people, etc. My strategy is more on the Internet, and just share everything.”
Rafaël despises being swayed by hierarchy in any way. And he despises it thoroughly. He frowns upon “hierarchy” in realms other than the Internet as well.
“What is the most important moment in your life?”
“I don’t believe in this idea of ‘the most important’. I don’t believe in hierarchy. So if you believe there is one essential moment, it doesn’t make any sense to me. Let’s say that your lifetime is one million seconds, why would one second be more important?”
Rafaël makes an effort to forget about “hierarchy” at any rate. So I decided to go ahead and ask him for the reason.
“It’s difficult to not think in hierarchy, because you always want to think, ‘Is Tokyo better or is New York better?’ ‘Is sushi better or is sashimi better?’ You spend so much time in your brain measuring; it doesn’t make any sense. It’s not necessary. It’s very unproductive.”
This way of thinking offers hints for all of us who are making things with the Internet as our canvas. For us, it truly is meaningless to be comparing with one another or thinking about our differences in rank. There is no need have these things on our minds when no one is restricted from sharing something he or she has made, and putting work on the Internet increases the chances for it to be seen by more people.
The arrival of the Internet, as all of us know, was a great turning point for humans. Society and our daily lives are constantly changing because of it.
However, the consciousness of Internet users doesn’t change easily. We are raised in a hierarchical society, and then when the Internet came, we are suddenly given freedom from hierarchy.
Rafaël has a completely pure outlook on this kind of freedom. He believes this freedom is granted by the Internet.
On the other hand, it seems like many people are at a loss upon receiving the sudden gift of freedom. This freedom we have in our hands should be a tool that helps us to be more productive and make the world a more interesting place. It shouldn’t be an execution system for freely and anonymously claim superiority over people who are in vulnerable positions. In the world of the Internet, we are blessed with the opportunity to forget about “hierarchy,” but why is this happening?
Lastly, I asked Rafaël, “Do you feel any anxiety if your work is not sold?”
He responded no. “Why I don’t have anxiety, it’s really because of the Internet. I think whatever happens, there will always be the Internet. So I can make whatever.”
Throughout our conversation, I sensed many hints for how to properly deal with this new form of “freedom.”
Photography : Suzette Lee (PARTY NY)
Translation : Mandy Wang (PARTY)
