On the eve of his exhibition at OHWOW, I sat down with Luis Gispert to talk about his approach and more importantly this installation. Combining his clean approach to photography with sculptures and a focus on the corollary or arrangement, this exhibition entitled "All Oyster, No Pearl" distances himself from previous methods. Gispert aims to point out the balance between "consummate reality and the decorated facades we tend to build around it" and this is subjected through a series of silver gelatin prints mounted onto customized boxes, composites the modern and cheap. Ultimately "All Oyster, No Pearls, Gispert's first exhibition at the OHWOW Gallery confronts a concept of syllogism. What you can appreciate from this exhibition is Gispert's ideology of discerning value through a discussion of hierarchy and value.

James Oliver: Can you tell us how you got into photography?

Luis Gispert: While getting my MFA in sculpture at Yale, I took a class with Catherine Opie and things changed. 

JO: Your aesthetic is very clean, can you tell us how this defines your approach?

LG: I'm a closet formalist, but my aesthetic is not always clean. If anything, the content is sullied.  My recent works are moving away from fetishized surfaces toward traces of the hand or gestures.

JO: Where do you source your inspiration from on a daily basis?

LG: Somewhere between the conscious and unconscious.

JO: Can you tell us where you live and whats the best thing about where you live?

LG: I live and work in Brooklyn New York. Most of my friends live or have studios close by.

JO: You also work on video and film, how do you feel this diversity of mediums compliments your work as a photographer?

LG: I'm actually a sculptor who steps out with film and photography.  In the end, I don't make distinctions between them.

JO: You have an exhibition at OHWOW Gallery in Los Angeles coming up, can you tell us a bit about the theme and concept?

LG: For the project on April 7th, "All Oyster No Pearl," I' m presenting a new body of work comprised of sculptures and silver gelatin photographs. These are photographs of constructions I've made in the studio, made with an 8 x 10 camera. The sculptures are made of hydrostone and chromed automobile accessories.

JO: How do you feel the internet effects the current art world? Please explain.

LG: The internet effects humanity, artists are somewhere in there.

James Oliver