How Megan Otnes creates a contemporary surreal
The multifaceted artist speaks to Phantasy about the enduring legacy of the Moomins on her work, and the isolation experienced creating in the post-algorithm world
Interview by Katherine Elliott
Megan Otnes is an artist whose work bridges the gap between work and play, humour and gravity, urban and natural. Currently based in Paris, Megan’s relentless output is unhindered by specific mediums; to name just a few, her works involve watercolour on paper, polymer clay chess pieces, kites and paper stop-motion videos. It is this expansive approach to making art that drives a work that is as inventive as it is playful.
From her childhood creative pursuits to her varied influences in animation, film and illustration, Otnes is truly a modern multi-hyphenate artist. With a background in interior design, filmmaking and modelling, she takes a myriad of experiences and influences to create an oeuvre that is at once idiosyncratic and striking.
Phantasy was lucky enough to sit down with Megan and discover the inner workings of her dreamy world.
Phantasy: What made you want to be an artist?
Megan: It’s hard to say what the specific driving force was, I think it was always a part of my being. I remember looking through an old childhood memory book that my parents made my sister and I fill out each year, and consistently from age six to around thirteen, I always wrote down that I wanted to become an artist, so you could say I’ve always been on this path.
Phantasy: Which artist has inspired you the most?
Megan: A big inspiration for me is Tove Jansson, who was the creator of the Moomins. She is the epitome of a multifaceted artist, always welcoming new mediums as her way to create her own world. She started out as a fine artist, focusing on painting, and eventually developed her career as a comic illustrator for the London newspaper, the Evening News. She created a Moomin play, Moomin wooden sculptures, and a few commissioned murals for public spaces. Her way of life also deeply inspires me. She lived life in a nontraditional way. She was proud to be a queer woman, travelled the world, wrote stories and never stopped being curious about life.
Phantasy: How would you describe your art?
Megan: Whimsical, playful, hopeful.
Phantasy: André Breton’s Manifesto of Surrealism extols an artistic practice that is the pure expression of one’s interior world, free of rational, aesthetic and moral influence. Is this an approach that resonates with your own creative process?
Megan:Yes, I agree and believe that my artist practice is merely a process of interpreting the world and describing my experience and hopes for it.
Phantasy: How would you say that your background in interior design and video work has informed your artistic practice?
Megan: My foundation in interior design school has given me the technical drawing skills I use in my illustration and mural work. We were taught to be very specific with measurements and line weight, so that background has definitely transitioned into my illustration style. The first medium I fell in love with was definitely filmmaking. I used to run a doll stop motion YouTube channel with my sister, where we taught ourselves the stages of filmmaking, pre-production, production and post. It was like real time play, and we’d piece the story together as we went.
As I’ve gotten older, film has still remained a big part of my life. I occasionally post on my YouTube channel, Megan Otnes, which acts as a bit of a video diary of my travels. More recently, I’ve been focusing on expanding my video work into animation which would include my illustration skills.
Phantasy: What kind of animation do you like?
Megan: Last year, I took an animation workshop in New York and discovered some really great animators that I didn't know before. I was introduced to the work of Jan Švankmajer, a mixed-media animator from the Czech Republic, who works with clay, dolls,still life, and even people, creating pixilation animation. I also love Yuri Norstein, the Russian animator behind Hedgehog in the Fog, a multi-plane cut out animation.
“The natural world influences all of my work, especially during my time away from the city. Living a slow paced life in the countryside can always ground me and clear my mind when it comes to creating art.”
Phantasy: Your practice is immensely varied. What about this “jack of all trades” sensibility appeals to you?
Megan: I have a constant curiosity for new mediums and ways of expression. I try not to limit myself when it comes to creating art. It can be difficult to exist in a society that has the urge to put artists into boxes, especially when trying to classify my art, but I try and push those boundaries in how I create.
Phantasy: How important is the interactive element of your artistic output? As the artist, what would you like people to take away from engaging with your work?
Megan: It’s hard to say because everyone’s experience with my work could be different. I just hope that people leave with a more playful and hopeful mindset.
Phantasy: How do you approach working within a format as established as chess? Do the constraints of the format challenge you as an artist?
Megan: I interpret it in my own style. I love to have some constraints as an artist to act more creatively, it helps me more than challenges me.
Phantasy: Given the interactive and immersive nature of your work, do you feel that these pieces span the worlds of art and design?
Megan: Yes, I definitely feel like my chess sets are at the border of art and design. Though I’d say there is a very distinct difference between the two. Design is all about function, and art is more about expression. With my chess sets, they serve a function, but are also an expression of my own style.
Phantasy: Do you feel that there is a distinction between the two labels? In art, is utility desirable?
Megan: In art, I think utility can be desired in the sense of how my art interacts with the world and where it exists within the space. It’s hard to spend hours of your time on a piece for it only to exist for beauty and to look at on a wall. There is this urge to have something more than that, to interact and to take something more from an experience.
Phantasy: How does the natural world inspire and influence your creative projects?
Megan: I draw inspiration from the landscapes I see, the way a tree bends and the way a leaf falls. I’m always observant when I’m out in nature, trying to soak in my surroundings and hold onto it for future reference. I feel like we’re always just trying to get back to our roots of nature and try to communicate with the collective unconscious.
Phantasy: Your works, especially doodles and sketches, often have a humorous element to them. (I personally loved your depiction of a tiger decked out in Onitsuka Tigers. Meta.) Do you think that playfulness is important in the art world?
Megan: Yes, definitely. It’s important for artists not to take the meaning behind their work too seriously, because sometimes there’s nothing incredibly deep to analyze. One of my favorite things to draw is a pun or a joke.
Phantasy: I loved your Treehouse Mural. Do you feel that the domestic exists as a space free from the perhaps restrictive nature of institutional exhibition spaces? How was this ‘residential’ project different to other works that you’ve produced?
Megan: Yes, I would say the Treehouse Mural was a very different project to experience in a residential vs. exhibition space. The walls themselves would change with the light throughout the day, which you wouldn’t get in the traditional, equally lit, white box of an exhibition. With the context of the space itself, the work is also experienced differently. I created this mural in my apartment, so I would see it every day, and as you grow used to your surroundings, it tends to have less of an impact.
This project was the longest interior project I had ever worked on. It took me six months to complete, from start to finish, with some breaks in-between. When working in the space that I live, the mural became such a part of my being, that I feel I have a greater attachment to this piece than my other works. I’ve had core memories in this space, I’ve grown with it and it’s grown with me as I’ve painted new elements through my time living in that apartment. Moving out of the apartment with the Treehouse Mural was one of the toughest things I’ve had to do. It was like having to leave a child, but I knew it had to be done because this era of my life was finished and I had to move on.
Phantasy: What do you think of the way that we create and consume art in a post-algorithm world?
Megan: Sometimes the process is a little bit isolating. A lot of art exists online and a lot of people just look at someone's art and stop at their Instagram profile. I'm trying to make more of a movement towards the physical space and having work in exhibitions. It feels more fulfilling than work that solely exists online. I think the positive thing with exhibition spaces is that it draws more attention. Attention and intention, because you purposefully enter into a space to experience a piece and think about it.
In my experience, “social media currency” has held more weight in modelling work. At the moment, I am kind of just dealing with striking a balance between having an identity online as a model and artist. I want my art to be more forefront, but just existing online is tough. I think a lot of people deal with being perceived online by creating a persona that people can see and have that shape their judgement, but I'm trying to have a healthy balance and distance from it. I just use social media to share what I have and try not to psych myself out with it.
Phantasy: You’ve lived in London, Tokyo, New York and Milan. What is it that drew you to these cities? Is there anything that makes each city unique?
Megan: I mainly had moved to these cities for modelling contracts, and through living in these big cities I’ve realized that they have a lot more in common than you’d think. Big cities all pretty much work the same, a metro system, central hub, fashion scene, gentrified brunch spot, big parks, etc... But of course, that’s just surface level. After living long term in these cities, I’ve been able to notice the differences in how different sides of the world work. European cities are slower paced, and cities like NYC and Tokyo are very buzzed on work and being busy. Within doses, both sides I enjoy.
Phantasy: How do you feel that you bring storytelling to your work? Would this even be an accurate assumption?
Megan: I would say I bring more of a documentary style way of storytelling, coming from my own personal narrative. Everything I make is a reflection of my experience and how I interpret the world.
Phantasy: And finally, here at Phantasy, we love stories and folklore. Do you have a favourite story?
Megan: I can’t think of one off the top of my head, but I love the animation Hedgehog in the Fog, which is a story of this hedgehog’s journey through the forest to deliver jam to his friend Bear. He’s spooked by all of the critters and shadows in the forest, but still continues to go on his way. During his journey, he comes across a horse that is standing there in the fog, and he’s just so infatuated with the horse and how she’s able to stand there. It’s a story about overcoming darkness and perseverance.
