This Kingston graduate, and current student at the Royal College of Art’s Critical Writing in Art & Design course, displays determined inquisitiveness across both visual and written work.
How would you describe your practice?
These days I'm calling myself a designer that writes. My time is split between writing and coming up with new design projects. But I actually don't see a huge difference between the two. For me it's always just been about finding new things to show or tell people about, in a 'bet you haven't seen this before' kind of way. It's either about presenting something new, or getting you to think about something in a new way.
Generally my work tends to focus on aspects of the everyday and a lifelong fascination with American culture. Sometimes a piece of writing inspires visual work and vice versa. I wrote my BA dissertation on McDonald's Happy Meal toys, a topic that produced both visual and written outcomes. Partially in thanks to the recent Snackwave trend, the Fast Food aesthetic has become fashion friendly. But when it comes to academia, the toys have been largely ignored and recede into the background of a larger realm of writing concerning collecting and object theory. Their ubiquity makes them easy to disregard; they appear disinteresting and superfluous. But it's only when you start to examine the everyday that you realise it's anything but.
You're studying on the Critical Writing in Art and Design course at the Royal College of Art, could you tell us something of what this course is like?
The course is built around seminars and workshop-based briefs focussed on different aspects of writing. We've looked at things such as the art of the interview, and most recently worked with the Royal Opera House. Work is submitted in advance so that everyone has a chance to read it before it's discussed later in a crit. So far on the course I've written drunk, written about a rebellious screenprinting nun from Los Angeles, made a fanzine about Disney's 'Aladdin' and interviewed a men's hair stylist at Harrods. For me, it's less about writing about 'art' or 'design' and more about asking, 'What, and why is this interesting?'
What are you working on at the moment?
I'm writing a new thesis. It's about a New York-based sports journal called JOCK from the late 1960s. It lasted only eight issues and has (very nearly) been lost entirely to time. Helmut Krone – whose name is irrevocably linked to the iconic VW ads – acted as its graphics consultant. It also boasts names from William F Buckley to Woody Allen and Muhammad Ali, so it's been incredibly exciting to get the chance to piece together its history and tell its story. The magazine has such a strong graphic identity, and I think everyone needs to see it. Other than that, I'm also freelancing and working on a few self-initiated projects on the side. I'm thinking about roller coasters and fan mail.
You did a project called The Disney Universe which resulted in you flying out to Disney HQ in California. Could you tell us a bit about the project and how this came about?
I've always been a hardcore Disney fan. The Disney Universe brings together every star from every Disney and Pixar animated classic feature-length film in the form of a four-metre long metallic print. It acts as a celebration of Disney's history and legacy and their belief that 'When You Wish Upon a Star...Your Dreams Come True'.
After coming up with the idea in my first year, it finally came to a culmination just before our degree show. I sent it to a couple of Disney blogs and after picking up some momentum online, Disney emailed and asked whether they could have a copy of the print to hang up in the studios in Burbank, California. I got to take a look around the Studio Lot and see the buildings where some of the Classics were conceived. It was an absolute dream come true for me. To this day there are only two copies in the world; one hangs in Kingston University, the other at the Disney Studios in Burbank, California.
What are your current hopes and plans for post-Masters life?
The dream is to live and work in the US, and to continue to pursue exciting work, regardless of what discipline that's in. It's just about working on stuff that makes your heart beat that little bit faster.
cargocollective.com/MMH
criticalwriting.rca.ac.uk/author/marianne-hanounrca-ac-uk
