“We think that one of the great virtues of art is that it enables us to see the world differently through multiple lenses,” comes the statement from the V collective, a fashion advertising and branding agency as well as the masterminds, along with 3 Deep Design, behind the newly launched Project 00. The specific lenses here are an art book, a DVD and a T-shirt, all focused on the work of a single artist.
The first issue, which makes its debut Sept. 17 at the New Museum, sets its sights on the German artist Robert Knoke with a 240-page book called “Black Material,” a selection of films and a T-shirt featuring one of Knoke’s striking black-and-white ink portraits. Knoke says he chose the title “Black Material” because the project made him look at his drawings differently and to focus on the details. “It’s more abstract than portraiture,” says Knoke, who is fascinated with fashion and pop-culture personalities like Rick Owens, Terence Koh and Patti Smith. “I use the portrait as a point of departure, but the person becomes my material through the drawing. They all end up looking the same in a way.” Casey Spooner, who is one of Knoke’s favorite subjects, concurs. “The drawings are almost like a mix of representational art and Abstract Expressionism,” Spooner says. “Collectively, the works become more like portraits of Robert himself.”
“Volume 01 – Black Material” will be sold at Seven New York, Oak, Isetan, 10 Corso Como and Colette.