{"id":148967,"date":"2019-12-10T08:12:33","date_gmt":"2019-12-10T00:12:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thehoneycombers.com\/hong-kong\/?p=148967"},"modified":"2024-11-20T19:42:56","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T11:42:56","slug":"the-forest-mori-claudia-lam-artist-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thehoneycombers.com\/hong-kong\/the-forest-mori-claudia-lam-artist-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"The Forest Mori: Dive into the colourful and therapeutic realm of artist Claudia Lam"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you keep an eye on local illustrators, such as Zlism<\/a>, Isatisse<\/a> and Cath Love<\/a>, then you’ll notice that independent pop art is getting more popular. Based in Perth, Australia, The Forest Mori has gained a dedicated following on Instagram with her uniquely endearing artwork, such as handmade brooches, enamel pins, stickers and personalised acrylic paintings. We interviewed the Hong Kong\/Australian artist Claudia Lam, the modest and amiable girl behind The Forest Mori, on her obsession with sloppy animals, colours, laziness and the inspirations behind her work.<\/p>\n

\"The
Hong Kong and Australian artist Claudia Lam hopes to turn something really depressing into something that people can have a good laugh with<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hi, Claudia. Thanks for sitting down with us. First thing first, why did you name your brand The Forest Mori?<\/h3>\n

There\u2019s actually not a reason. It\u2019s a name that I\u2019ve been using since I was sixteen and it just stuck with me. I thought I’d just keep using it as my brand name. It was pretty catchy and it worked out. A lot of people thought it was related to my name or whatnot, but it\u2019s actually not.<\/p>\n

Your art consists mostly of anthropomorphic animals. Have you always been fond of animals or is it because you simply find animals visually pleasing to yourself and others?<\/h3>\n

Animals are definitely one of my favourite things in the world, especially lazy animals like sloths, pandas… Basically anything sloppy, lazy and just tired in general. I think I identify with these animals a lot because I\u2019m also a very sloppy person (laughs)<\/em>. It\u2019s my way of expressing myself using these animals. I don\u2019t just pick random animals, I resonate with them. And being a person who likes to be in the nature, it\u2019s always fun to create animal-related artwork.<\/p>\n

\"The
Most of the stuff from The Forest Mori are handmade as it gives them a personal touch<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How do you create your illustrations? Do you start with a pencil or digital sketch?\u00a0<\/h3>\n

I like to use mixed media. I don\u2019t like to just use pencil, charcoal, or paint but rather a bit of everything. I panic when I only work with one medium because I feel like I\u2019m limited to a lot of things that I could\u2019ve done to the artwork. Even if I\u2019m painting with acrylics, I would add things like glitters, clay or even pipe cleaners, cotton \u2013 just different types of textures that I could put onto my artwork. It gives it a very different feeling, and a lot more of the happy and blobby style that I\u2019m trying to go for.<\/p>\n

Why do you choose to convey affection and cuteness in your illustrations when a lot of artists tend to depict darker and more destructive things?<\/h3>\n

I think my work used to be dark and destructive as well. There was a time I tried to make my work really delicate and fine, like realistic artwork. I didn\u2019t identify with it a lot and I felt like it wasn\u2019t as fun to keep doing. I kept making detailed art because I thought, for it to be good art, it had to be something people can\u2019t do. So the process of me figuring out what good art is was quite a struggle. In the end, it\u2019s always good to just do simple art that people can relate to, and to turn the negative into something that people can have a good laugh at.<\/p>\n

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A post shared by The Forest Mori (@theforestmori)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n