An amazing creative duo
THE ARCHIVE : We want to know all about each one of you… tell us about your journey into the creative world.
Kaya: My journey started already when I was a little girl. Yes, I know that sounds kitschy, but it’s really true. My creative streak was proverbially given to me as a gift in my cradle. With about 2 years I loved to watch my mother getting dressed, putting on her make-up or decorating presents she created by herself. She is such a stylish, beautiful woman. She did it, and still does it, with the greatest of ease (without wasting hours) and always with attention to detail. So I started to imitate. And not because children do, cause they do imitate, but with such an enjoyment.
Later then in school I loved the drawing lessons. I had my own creative corner in our house to paint pictures, doing batik work, stitching first easy cloth and a lot more.
I spent a lot of hours in my parent’s company too, when I developed a particular attention to watch my father at work, while he created teeth. It’s important to have a steady hand and an eye for detail. Observing was quite meditative for me and I realized that it is a pretty creative work though. When my father told me that he earlier created some rings for my mother, I soon created rings of silver and gold, cause the entire equipment made it possible for me.
Being a daughter of two self-employed creative I have been brought up with creativity and entrepreneurial thinking.
In high school and during my studies (journalism and communication science) I worked as a model. But from the start the catfights between the girls were too much for me so I soon switched the side and I became a fashion stylist.
After studies I worked in the marketing section for international leading companies for some years. In the beginning I loved the job but in the end I always had the feeling that I miss something. So I decided to leave my job to fulfil myself a long-standing wish. I made a degree as a make up artist and started besides working as a fashion stylist again, that was the time when I met Clark!
Clark: My journey started in my young age as well. I grew up with a lot of daydreams, colourful games and magic moments.
My mother was drawing cartoons for a newspaper and my father was filming and cutting experimental material on 8mm and 16mm. I was fascinated by the opportunity of capturing moments, equally whether these impressions were recorded in paper or in film format.
When I was a teenager, I switched to a secondary school for photography and graphic design where I learned the basic skills and techniques. I shot analogue material that I developed and exposed in the dark room. For me, analogue was the perfect way to get a feeling for the subject of photography, colours, contrast and retouching.
I gathered my professional skills at the time I worked for international fashion and commercial productions in photo- and digital-operating. It was an intense time in which I had a lot of different creative inputs. My work made me travel around and I got to know a lot of people. So I was able to see all facets of this business and discovered different working flows. I had fun too, yeah ! There was this job on Ibiza for a lingerie and swimsuits company. I stayed there for two weeks, spending my time at the beaches, at a yacht and at a mansion in the hills. I loved it.
That was also the time Kaya and me found each other 🙂 and where I already had the feeling to start my own photography business.
The perfect time for both of us to output our creative needs.
TA : How did you two meet?
Both: (laughing)
K: We met at an editorial shooting where Clark still did photo- and digital operating and I did the fashion styling. While I tried to fix my cloth rack, cause the screw was crooked plugged in the opening angle; I looked for a strong man in the studio. But none was there. When I already was in a state of total despair, cause the cloth started to crumple, I looked up…and there he opened the door and entered the studio…He had a short haircut, no beard (not like now) and his horn eyeglasses. His strong shoulders and his look reminded me of Clark Kent, so I shouted: “Hi Superman! Could you please help me on that?” And what should I tell you, sure he fixed it in one second. Superman was alive and our love was born!
TA : How did you come up with the name “Chakk Boom”?
Both: Chakk is the fusion of us by name. Boom is the heartbeat for each other and the work we create. We searched for a name to describe our vision, creative mixture and the love that is a very big part in our life and work. So here we go – Chakk Boom.
TA : What steps do you follow while working on a project?
Both: The first step and main important thing is to empathize us into the work, project or theme. For example, if we are going to shoot a lookbook or campaign for a fashion designer : we want to know the vision behind the collection and the story from the designer himself or rather the person behind. We want to become a part of it and feel it. That’s the most genuine access to express visions and stories in our visual imagery. Then we look out for the perfect location, go-see models, and organize everything around the production. We also work with dynamic extern partners to strengthen our team for a maximum output. And we only choose kind-hearted ones because for us it is very important to work in a good flow with honest vibrations. Superficiality – we want no part of it.
TA : What are your next bigger projects? Can you tell us a bit about them?
Both: Right now we started to sell limited editions of our artworks through a world’s leading gallery “Saatchi Art” in Los Angeles. Collectors can as well online purchase our limited editions, which then can be shipped worldwide. Step by step we will add more and more artworks. We are also in preparations for another big deal. When it comes out, it will be international. But right now we cannot reveal you what it will be. And we are actually looking for a suitable agent to represent our agency. There is already so much to do that we sometimes don’t know what to do next.
TA : How would you describe your work/style?
Both: It’s hard to describe our style by ourselves. But in a way our working style is modern future, because we melt the abstract with the realistic. We want to create fresh new ways of communication and visual perception. What we really love is to stage sceneries and to invent individual stories.
TA : Question for Clark… where do you start when creating one of your artworks?
C: Mostly I start in my mind. When I get a vision I create the parts of it in my fantasies and then decide what I need to realize it. I also work freestyle, which means that I love to capture anything that inspires me when I am around. During this process I get visions for a new artwork. Back to my digital dark room I pick parts out of these pictures to create a new one. Once I’ve started I’m melting with the artwork. The exciting thing is that there are so many different possibilities for the creation. And I love this great variety.
TA : Question for Kaya… What is the part you like the most about your editorial projects and why?
K: Puh…hard to say. I love everything on my/our work. Starting from the first reflections how it should look like. I love to imagine and envision a story – this is such an exiting part. And yes I do love to organize too, let’s say I’m a little control-freak, and this is something that is really not suitable with (my) creativity. Everything is structured, at least the process on the paper, my desk, my computer etc. but because creativity or working with other people is rarely linear, it often ends up in a chaos ;o) And I love to establish order, haha.
I love to look for matching models or new locations. And I absolutely love to visualize the models in my devised make up or running around checking the right outfits for them. Oh yeah! And I love the shooting day itself of course. While watching the final result always makes my day.
TA : Where would you love to take your creativity in the future?
C: I would love to shoot an editorial or campaign in Agartha or on Mars, haha.
K: No, but serious, we love to travel, so we would love to live and work at beautiful magic places on Planet Earth ;o) We want to invite people who are looking at our pictures on a journey to overwhelming places and stories. Our baby girl is soon turning 3, so farther trips are coming closer. Stay tuned.
TA : What is your best memory working together up until now?
Both (be all smiles): When we met the first time. Ohhh, the bristling tension between us…
C: And when Kaya was heavily pregnant with our little baby girl. We have shot at 35 degrees in the shade, somewhere out in the middle of nowhere. All the way up a hill with her huge belly. She was absolutely magnificent.
