Pablo Serret de Ena is an artist based in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Grande is his design and illustration doppelgänger.
TWS –How are you doing in this Covid-19 pandemic?
PSE/G –Hola Max! I am doing fine, feeling healthy and lucky that everyone around is ok. Here in Copenhagen, we just entered a new phase with smoother restrictions, although we’ve been locked down for almost seven weeks, barely going out. Living the situation with gratitude, a little despair and some historical fascination.
TWS –Are you being able to telecommute / work from home?
PSE/G –I usually work at home, my studio is my home, so the big difference now is more about the time and focus, rather than the tools or space. I’ve been mostly dedicated to take care of my kids and family, so I decided to pause all my projects until everything clears out and I find proper time for them.
TWS –Did the lock-down affect your creativity and art making? How?
PSE/G –Because of the previous paternity leaves, I already spent a lot of time with my kids before, which taught me many valuable lessons that I could apply now. It is similar but different, but similar.
Being with the kids basically means placing most of your energy and mental activity somewhere else… so they bring back something weirder and unexpected (and everything in between). It is a very “collage” type of process, where concepts juxtapose and collide in new meanings. That includes meteorites carrying dead grandpas, the Moon sleeping in a car or oversized genitals on superheroes.
On the other hand, whenever you can space out and think about your own stuff, your mind works super fast and efficiently, kind of in a creative survival mode. You puzzle and solve many things in your head that later you will just apply right away. I also always keep a notebook around where to draw and write all these sparks, just in case.
TWS –Are you able to track positive moments or things that happened during this crisis so far?
– I realised the fragile position my mom could be in, and connected with her in a very pure way, maybe the purest ever.
– I stopped eating meat.
– Missing things helps you value them, a classic. The first day I went out, I took a picture of the sky, which I don’t remember doing in years.
– This is not vacation time, but a time under special circumstances, so expect to behave special, in whatever way that might be. That should include to treat yourself nicely and allow yourself to be in whatever mood you live in.
– Reality mimicking fiction.
– Animals regaining territory.
TWS –What’s the first thing you would like to do when we can get back to normal?
PSE/G –Hug some people, fulfil curiosities and learn to sail the North Sea.
