Slow living while time is running

What pieces or projects have you been working on lately?
Although my most frequent subject has been people in their homes, in recent years, due to my lifestyle and love for summer, I prefer to focus on people’s leisure time during the summer—whether in summer houses, in the countryside, or with objects and corners that connect the past with our future.

What did you learn (or unlearn) while working on them?
I have learned how precious the little joys of everyday life are, the ones that keep us alive, and that if we don’t appreciate and enjoy them, life becomes difficult and dull.

What words, ideas or emotions were going through your head?
The emotions I experience when capturing anything alive—and especially the light—are that joy and sorrow coexist.

Were there any conversations, movies, music, or books that made their way into that work?
The conversation behind my creative process stems from a question I was once asked in a seminar: to describe in a single phrase how I want my life to be. I replied that I would like to live near the sea, far from the crowds, creating without growing old. Guided by this deeper desire, I am aesthetically influenced by the frames in the films of Kaurismäki, Roy Andersson and Agnès Varda.

What's been the most difficult thing you've faced recently in your creative process?
The greatest difficulty in my creative process this month was that it was summer, the heat was intense, the cicadas were loud, and that made me feel like I didn’t want to do anything except lie down and enjoy life.

If you could have dinner at any restaurant tonight,where would it be and what would you order?
I would love to eat at a seaside taverna, just outside the city center, and I would order 'calamarakia' and french fries.

If your life were a movie this month, what would it be called and who would write the soundtrack?
Slow living while time is running, with cicadas and birds as the soundtrack.

Recommend us an artist you follow who inspires you, and tell us what you like most about their work or their way of working.
Roy Andersson, as a director, creates poetic images that blend tragedy with humor.