The Medium is the Message: Chrissie Abbott
When I finally met Chrissie and her husband, French, seven years ago, they had acquired a near-mythical stature.
These two Brits had been hyped up by so many of my best friends that it seemed doomed for failure–like when I read Oasis were the best band since the Beatles in NME, so I excitedly ordered the CD single of Supersonicand it was just a few minutes of boring sludge. So I approached with trepidation, but was amazed that the reality was even better than the pitch. Chrissie and French are some of the most lovely, generous, funny and weird characters I have the honour of calling my friends. They’re so nice, you tend to forget they’re actually world-renowned artists that exhibit internationally and do incredible work with the world’s top brands. Actually, French will constantly remind you of that, while Chrissie just gets on with it. I spoke to her via email, after we had a bit of a bum Zoom connection. 2021!
How are you going, Chrissie? How has life in Nuremberg been for the past year?
I’m good thank you! Life in Nuremberg has been even quieter than usual; I barely leave the house, to be honest. Now the death grip of winter is easing, I’m able to get out on my bike and see a little bit more than just my apartment and the supermarket.
Have you been there the whole time? Have you been able to see your family?
Yeah, the whole time! I haven’t been back to the UK since January last year, so have only seen my family through a screen. I’m sort of used to that in lots of ways, but it does feel like a long time now. You can’t beat a real-life conversation and a hug. But I’m also conscious that a lot of people have been in really awful situations due to Covid, so I’m just trying to count my blessings and not moan too much.
You’ve travelled a lot in the past. Which places have you enjoyed the most? How does your physical location affect your work?
Australia will always feel like a second home to me, and I really love California. I think I’m drawn to anywhere with better weather than England. I can’t believe I’m bringing weather chit-chat into this conversation. The places I’ve enjoyed the most have always been because of the friends I’ve made; great people make even the worst places amazing if you can laugh about it together. Being able to travel has no doubt opened my brain up to a wider variety of influences. Seeing new things makes a huge difference inspiration-wise– particularly when it comes to colour. On a more functional level, I actually stopped drawing and painting and my work became fully digital for a while; because I was moving around so much I had to just make do with a laptop.
Your work seems to approach all kinds of subject matter, dark and light, through a sort of cosmic prism. Knowing you, this makes perfect sense. What led you to your aesthetic and approach?
I like that description! I feel like the answer is a lot less cool, though; I think a lot of my influences come from my parents. My mum was super into meditation, reiki, and the whole world of self-help, which came with a lot of wild and wonderful aesthetics and graphics, especially in the 90s. My dad was a computer software programmer and a sceptic who was into classic rock; a combo that’s also very visually inspiring. I think maybe you never really realise what’s going into your subconscious when you’re growing up but I’m pretty sure that recipe heavily affected my visual output. Not to get too dark or deep but they both died in my early twenties, around the time when I was just starting out in my career. It was a really dark time and I wanted to make work that was bright and vibrant and didn’t make anyone think of grief; sort of acknowledging the darkness and forcibly trying to make it light. Maybe including references to them both is also a way of paying homage to the huge influence they had.
You use your work across lots of applications–fabrics, sculptures, prints… what makes you choose a particular medium of application for a particular work or collection?
I really love fabric at the moment; digital printing on silk somehow enables the colours to be as vibrant as I see them on the screen. What’s that saying, ‘the medium is the message’? I tend to just pick according to what feels right at the time.
You use sayings and words in your work, many of them simple things we have been hearing all our lives, but in your work they take on a new meaning. What is the significance of words in your work?
On a boring level, I have a graphic design background and I really love typography, but I also really like how reading the same words over and over again can become like a subconscious mantra. Often the words and phrases I use in my work are things I’m trying to believe myself or think are funny.
How about animals? I always felt like you should have a pet.
I would love a pet. Hopefully one day soon. Our vacuum cleaner is equipped with pet hair capabilities in anticipation of a fluffy addition to the family.
What is going on with the 101 Gallery? You had a show titled Gamma there last year?
Yeah! French started the gallery around this time last year and despite the perils of Covid, it’s been a huge success and brought a lot of cool people and art to Nuremberg. It’s a great space and I love that his approach is so inclusive across the board. The group show he curated had huge names as well as people who are just starting out, which is a really nice way of levelling the playing field and showcasing new talent. I had my show in September and made a collection of my aforementioned favourite silk banners, as well as some merch like shirts, mugs and fun bits. I think because I’m at this weird intersection between being a designer and an artist I feel more comfortable making products rather than one-off artworks.
How do your artwork and your paid work intersect?
My personal work differs from commissioned work mainly because it comes straight from my brain, whereas commissioned or paid work usually means answering a brief or communicating someone else’s message, which I also really enjoy because it’s like finding a visual solution. At the moment I have a day job with adidas Originals (the reason I’m in Nuremberg) that is more like creative direction; I’m in a department called Brand Design which is basically about how stories manifest visually across everything. So there’s a lot less cats and rainbows; it’s more strategic and overseeing direction than physically designing. It uses another part of my brain than my personal or illustration work but it’s still influenced by fashion, music and life. So I actually keep it quite separate; like how cows have different sections in their stomachs. Or the left brain and the right brain?
Yours and French’s work are worlds apart, at least on a surface level. Are there similarities in your approaches? Do you like the same stuff?
Yeah, luckily we like a lot of the same stuff! We have a big book collection with lots of overlaps when it comes to magic and things like that, and various other references. Over the years we have gathered a cool collection of other people’s artwork that we share. We like a lot of the same music too. I just can’t cope with death metal–it makes me have a panic attack. His work is so amazing and well-considered; he has a lot more patience and eye for detail than I do.
What does the future hold for you? What are you looking forward to?
We are moving back to England! Maybe a pet! Lot’s of things to look forward to.