Diana Al-Hadid's Studio Boom | "New York Close Up" | Art21

Can growing a business and maturing as an artist go hand in hand? In this film, artist Diana Al-Hadid and her crew of dedicated assistants strike a balance between work and play while finishing a new sculpture on a tight deadline. Filmed over several months at Al-Hadid's studio in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, the collaborative team of young artists devote long hours towards the completion of "Nolli's Orders" (2012) for its debut in the "Invisible Cities" [http://www.massmoca.org/event_details.php?id=669] exhibition at MASSMoCA. In a year marked by rapid growth in the studio, Al-Hadid keeps pace with the demand for her massive sculptures by enlarging her workspace, teaching specialized sculptural techniques to others, and making efficient use of time and resources. Charting the expansion of her operation over the years—from working alone in a small space to renovating and managing a floor of artist studios for additional income—Al-Hadid's artistic ambitions are made possible by her ability to create an enjoyable, yet highly productive working environment, and to problem-solve on a grand scale. As moving day steadily approaches, Al-Hadid and her team create a manual detailing the complex assembly instructions for "Nolli's Orders," slowly dismantle and crate the intricate sculpture, and clear out the studio to begin work on the next project.

Diana Al-Hadid (b. 1981, Allepo, Syria; raised in Cleveland, Ohio, USA) lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. Learn more about the artist at:
http://www.art21.org/newyorkcloseup/artists/diana-al-hadid/

CREDITS | "New York Close Up" Created & Produced by: Wesley Miller & Nick Ravich. Editor: Brad Kimbrough. Cinematography: John Marton, Wesley Miller & Nick Ravich. Sound: Scott Fernjack, Wesley Miller & Nick Ravich. Associate Producer: Ian Forster. Production Assistant: Amanda Long & Tida Tippapart. Design & Graphics: Open. Artwork: Diana Al-Hadid. Thanks: Loren Alliston, Jonathan deSimone, Drew Dudak, Sarah Faitell, Dennis Harvey, Nicholas Joyce, Yeji Lee, MASS MoCA, Ryan Muller, Paul Pino, Platypus Fine Art, Jack Samels, United Van Lines. An Art21 Workshop Production. © Art21, Inc. 2012. All rights reserved.

New York Close Up is supported, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; Toby Devan Lewis; Lambent Foundation; the Dedalus Foundation, Inc.; and the Lily Auchincloss Foundation, Inc. Additional support provided by The 1896 Studios & Stages, and by individual contributors.

(Laughter)

This is what it feels like in my city all the time: super tense.

Diana Al-Hadid--Artiste

"What’s gonna happen?"
[lauhgs]

Applicationeffetsonores-iPhone de Ryan

"You should do quick steps there"

"And then..."

[scratching sound]

"How is the beat studio?"

"Boom!"

"What up!"

"You gonna carry it sexy"

[laughing] "Yeah"

[music]

[sounds of blowtorch]

Four years ago this whole floor was just one empty space

[sounds of drilling]

There was no plumbing there was no heaters, there was no electrical

Does it look level to you?

Lucky for me, I got it grant and I partitioned to move it out

some of it is rented to other artists.

And I curved out a space for myself that was way bigger than I ever dreamt

I was taking on too much in figuring out how to make it happen.

It's real. It works. Sort of.

When I first moved to New-York, my studio was maybe 700 sq feet

I made sculptures within inches of the walls, it was really difficult,

Especially for the work that I made. It taugh me how to be efficient,

how to save space, how to save money and especially how to save time.

Cause no one helps me, and when you don’t have a lot of resources, you get sharp.

[inaudible speaking]

Yeah!

[hammering and drilling noise]

This past year I had a pretty fast growth.

It just impossible to do this alone on this scale.

Do you have a bucket for me? Yes!

So, now I have assistants that help me make these things.

That's also why I have a studio manager to allocate different tasks to people

now I can focus on something that requires my attention.

Working on a set this large is amazing, it’s so much fun

[Diana laughs]

"When I was first working for her I was her only assistant."

"I spent like 6 months working really closely with just her I learnt a lot about all different techniques."

'It might just be that one rod".

"You are great"

"She’a kind of a “go big or go home” person"

"Yes, why won’t I want it there?"

"Everything is like balls to the wall, giant sculptures."

"And all the process here are really specific, and a little bit weird and unique"

"So largely what I do is training other people, on how to do something in the way that Diana wants it done."

All this stuff I do people can learn. It’s really easy. I think. Everything I do is easy.

"Yeah, but it also like watching the master at work."

[Diana laughs]

I mean to touch fiber glass like you do, to hold it, you can’t do it yourself.

"I’m much faster."

Yeah, and you make it look more natural.

It was kind of messy here for many years.

Because of Nick, now I look like a professional.

"She likes receipts, keeping track of everything to the penny, so that’s actually a difficult part.

Tons of details. [laughs] Exciting details.

John and I have a competition.

It’s like I have to get her in the office, and he has to get her on the studio on the same day. So we split her."

[inaudible background conversation]

Everybody's going outside

This is like a really great working environment. It’s really nice being here Im definitely learning a lot

but on the other hand it is really time consuming.

So I think there’ll come a point at which I need to go do my own thing now.

The hardest part of leaving here will be the fact that we laugh so much at work

I mean it’s serious here, we are getting shit done, but the fact that the vibe is really relax is so nice.

[inaudible speaking]

There’s huge change that happens at the end,

like once everything got attached and a lot of the big main decisions are made.

My focus is on these minuscule details, the knots in the books.

There are still supports, like here there is little ones inside here, and here.

And this drips kind of obscure where the supports are. To make it looks like you are in the scifi kind of world

That the rules of physics are being bent.

Elements come on and come off, so my job is predicating some of those things.

We are like very geeky about ways to problem solve large complicated sculptures.

The sculptures itself is not built in a rational way. It has more of an aesthetic goal rather than a tectonic one.

So the things I am working mostly right now are construction manuals on how to assemble one of these things.

I am always running out to the studio measuring pieces and coming back to the computer.

It’s part of the sculpture that you don’t see. These instruction manuals will stay with the sculptures for the rest of its life.

Sometimes I ll get home after working here, and then I have a lot of dreams about cutting, gluing,

and I am not sure if I am dreaming about doing her work or doing my work.

And in the end it doesn’t make a big difference to me.

What we are doing in the studio together is our own problem for a while.

And at some point, it will be the world problem. Forever.
[laughs]

The art world is really temperamental, so I could be down to myself next year, who knows.

But I am careful, and I try to be prepared for luck.

Artist are some of the savviest, inventive people, they have to manage a really illogical pursuit,

the rest of the world is a lot more logical.

Every artist I know is dealing with lot of stress, and a lot of desire; and a lot of curiosity.

They are kind of sneaky undercover people like you and me so be careful, we're everywhere.

Cleans party!