Sven Durst, 3 objects
Sven Durst is an artist and designer working in object making, creative direction, and photography. And he’s just published issue two of 3 objects.
Each issue of the magazine asks 13 people a simple question: ‘What are your three favourite objects?’ Their answers offer a glimpse into the intimate connections between people and the objects they hold dear; interviewees in this issue include artist Michael Stipe, PIN-UP founder Felix Burrichter, bodybuilder Tischa Thomas, and a Sicilian woman with a remarakble life story.
What are you doing this morning?
I just came back from a trip to Sweden, so today I’ve been taking it a bit slow. I’m in the process of designing a series of furniture objects, so I went to the construction store to get some materials for the prototypes. On the way back, I stopped at my favourite Italian place, Centro Italia, and had my favourite panini with parmesan and grilled vegetables and an espresso. I wasn’t full afterwards, so I also had some cannelloni, which made me very happy. Then I wrote and sketched some ideas in my notebook.
I work from my apartment which is also my studio at the moment. I work best when all the windows are open. I love tables, so I have two I can rotate between. Right now I’m listening to Solange’s ‘When I Get Home’ album.
I try to keep my space tidy, but it often gets chaotic when I’m working on different projects. I can’t wait to have a separate studio again. If I really need to concentrate and get things done, I go to the library and pretend to be a very structured person.
Which magazine do you first remember?
The first magazine I remember is Bravo. I don’t know if they still do it. It was a magazine for young teenagers, and at the back there were always two naked people talking about their bodies. I never bought it, but my neighbour Ida had all the issues.
Aside from yours, what’s your favourite magazine/zine?
SD (Space Design) magazine. A Japanese architecture magazine published between the sixties and early 2000s. Some issues are bilingual. The layouts are beautiful (below), with paper changing depending on the content. There’s always a beautiful mix of sketches and images. I also love old adverts—they were really beautiful in the seventies and eighties. My favourite issue is the Carlo Scarpa one!
What other piece of media would you recommend?
The show ‘Fantasmas’ by Julio Torre is so much fun. I love reels of piglets on instagram. If I go on a trip I check iconichouses.org to see if there is interesting architecture around.
Describe 3 objects in three words
Doors to people.
How open is your brief to contributors—can they select anything?
The brief is super open. I just make an appointment with the interviewees. Then I visit them at their home or studio with just my camera and a phone to record the interview. Since I’m a one-person magazine, I need to keep it very simple.
They know that I want to see and hear about their three favourite objects beforehand. Some do the selection before the visit; others decide in the moment. There are no rules! They can choose anything. It almost says more about someone how someone reacts to the question than what objects they choose.
What can objects tell us about people?
I’m fascinated by how much you can get to know someone from this simple question. If a question comes from a genuine place of interest, almost everyone likes to answer it.
It often becomes a really interesting conversation. For the second issue, almost all the people I visited were ones I didn’t know personally before. Every time I’m about to ring the bell, a thousand questions flash through my mind: What kind of stupid project is this? Where is all this going? Will this be weird? What if we don‘t connect? It’s such a big step out of the comfort zone!
More often than not, I’m surprised by people’s choices. I loved Tischa Thomas’s objects (above). She’s a performer and used to be the third most successful bodybuilder in the world. She chose two crowns and one ring, which are such strong metaphors for her life.
I also met a lady in Sicily, Marion, by chance. She couldn’t stop talking, and we became good friends. It was beautiful to connect with someone almost fifty years older.
What would be your three objects?
The most important thing is not to overthink the question too much. It’s more like a playful, almost childlike approach. Tomorrow it could be something else.
1—Light blue vest my mother knitted: As a child, I didn’t like wearing the clothes my mum made, but now I only want to wear her clothes. I have many pieces now—from knitted vests and jumpers to fine embroidered shirts and trousers. She’s super handy and comes up with all the designs herself.
2—Camera: I shoot every interview with this Contax camera and I’ve had it for about seven years. It’s also the only camera I own. It’s very reliable.
3—Sunglasses: I really don’t know why, but I love these sunglasses. They’re nothing special, and I don’t treat them very well, but if I think about my favourite objects, they pop into my mind first. I remember watching Only Lovers Left Alive a few years ago, and one of the characters wears this model.
Show us a story that sums up how the magazine works, and explain why you selected it
My encounter with Marion was completely random, and the last object she showed me was this stone bench. It really shows how an object can open the door to a very personal story, something you would never hear from someone you’d only met 30 minutes earlier. I think the photo catches her spirit very well.
What has publishing the magazine taught you that may be helpful to anyone else planning to launch one?
I started without a real structure. When I put the first issue together in 2023, a big German publishing house wanted to publish it, but in the end I couldn’t afford their offer for Young Artist. Eventually I collaborated with a publisher from Seoul. I went from store to store asking if they would sell it. Eventually, I had a good number of stores across Europe and South Korea.
The second issue is self-published, and now I work with a distributor. I’m realising it’s getting too much work for one person, so I want to build a small team.
My only advice: just do it. Don’t overthink. You’ll only know after you’ve tried.
What are you most looking forward to this coming week?
I can’t wait to finally put together and see the prototypes I’ve made. Also, a friend is visiting, and I want to do fun things together. At the end of the week, I’m going on another trip to southern Germany.