15 Questions With… Stig de Block
How are you at the moment?
I’m feeling great, thank you.
What is your morning ritual? How does your day begin?
I work from home so I have the leverage to wake up at 7am and have an hour to myself before I do anything else. Mostly I’m having coffee with my girlfriend and talk through our day or future plans.
What, right now, can you see?
On Oct 20th, I opened my first solo show i.c.c. with creative agency Mutant. I’m at the exhibition right now looking at two 130x180cm chrome framed artworks.
What artist, project, book would you recommend we see/follow?
Chain Link by Lee Friedlander. A great inspiration.
Tell us about your process when starting a new project
The last 4-5 years I’ve been heavily invested in the lowrider scene in Los Angeles. It’s an on-going intimate portrait that I’m making together with the community. Early on the process I found out local car and bodyshop owners have a 1 to 1 export business to Japan. So that same culture is being translated across the ocean, the same cars, a similar dresscode in a Japan scenery. I’m currently looking into initiating a second chapter of the project over there to look for contrasts, differences and similarities with the cultures origine…It’s still at an early stage so I’m reaching out to local lowrider Car Clubs to see what city or area could be interesting. It’s a long-term thing to execute so I find it important to keep reading about lowriding history. To try to understand the culture better and get its heritage and the reasons why. Investing time in the community, reading where possible and conversation. I think those are my building blocks.
What has been your favourite collaboration?
Shooting Louis Vuitton’s Mens SS22 last January in Los Angeles with David Martin. It was an ode to Virgil’s last menswear collection together with Duckwrth and Robert Neal. I think the result came out great. I’m still very pleased with it.
What is your greatest achievement?
Opening my first solo show independently. It’s titled Back to Back: From Backyard to Boulevard. And publishing my first book simultaneously.
What is your greatest regret?
I don’t believe in regrets. There’s situations and lessons learned. Moving on.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Stress Less
What is your latest project about?
Back to Back: From Backyard to Boulevard is an intimate portrait of the lowrider community in Los Angeles. It’s about connection and bringing people, from different cultures, together and unite as one. It’s an on-going project that I started 4 years ago but it was finally ready to be shown a first time. Next to the exhibition I made a 240p. book, published by Hopper & Fuchs. Estevan Oriol wrote the preface for it.
What are you researching at the moment?
Lowriding in Japan
What can you not work without?
A structured, well-thought out plan and a great team. No ego’s.
What challenges have you faced working in your industry?
There’s always something to be said or done so finding a balance between work and my private life was the biggest challenge for me—and it continues to be.
What are you hoping for in 2023?
I would love to show the work in the US and Japan in the next coming years.
Share a song with us, what are you listening to at the moment?
(Editor’s note: Listen to this song and other favourites from the ’15 Questions With…’ interview series with our Spotify playlist!)
All images, spreads, installation photographs © Stig de Block. Back to Back: From Backyard to Boulevard (Hopper & Fuchs, 2022) is available to purchase here.