The Amsterdam-based Raymond Lemstra has been one of our favorite Dutch artists for some years now. The creatures he creates (mostly drawn) show his interest in distortion as a result of selective emphasis; parts of interest are emphasized, unimportant parts reduced or left out. His distinct characters therefore often come out big headed, with focus on the faces and the body trimmed to its essential properties, all marked with his personal style, tough often very different in specific form. As he has stated on his vision and aesthetic: "The contrast between my naive and at the same time sophisticated approach to my work gives it a somewhat awkward taste. It is a clash of intent, simultaneously assuming simplicity and complexity, randomness and reason, flaws and perfection." We've been following Raymond since the very beginning of Another Something & Co and feel extremely grateful to have collaborated with him during the first Our Current Obsessions. Having been this inspired by his work for all this time, we now ask him about his inspirations. [ Continue reading ]

The collaboration between Our Current Obsessions and our friend Raymond Lemstra was established early in the creation of NOIR. Being fans of Raymond’s vision for years now, both within his graphic work and the few sculptures he had made in the past, it was decided quickly to create another one of those fascinating creatures, but now in jet black instead of his usual strong colors, exclusively for NOIR. Raymond introduced Sybren Karst, specialized in woodwork, early in the proces, who proved to be the perfect partner for Lemstra, and together they created, all from old wooden play blocks, the extraordinary sculpture which is clearly marked with Raymond’s signature aesthetic and named ‚Eng’, which means scary in Dutch. We are extremely pleased with the result and hope for more beautiful collaborations by Raymond and Sybren in the future. [ Continue reading ]

Our friend and talented illustrator Raymond Lemstra finally finished his own portfolio website. Enjoy this beautiful work here >… [ Continue reading ]

Last Friday was a very special day. After a lot of hard work over the course of the last couple of months we were finally able to open a next chapter in the AS&Co universe: a tactile space that will be open for the public named Our Current Obsessions. The new space, which also houses the studio, can in many ways be seen as a direct result of what has been created online since the eruption of Another Something in 2009, but with more focus in its purpose. Our Current Obsessions will hybridize the traditional concept of an art gallery with a retail-space, always based around one particular theme in which we will take a deep-dive both off- and online. Located right at the mouth of one of Amsterdam's main canals, it is a little dream come true that finally our love for the ‘beauty of cultures’ can be touched and shared in the analogue world. [ Continue reading ]

Ilja Keizer, Dutch photographer and creative mind behind ‘Smile In Your Face’ asked me to share my favorite image, movie, scent, sound, poet and artists on their blog. What have Banksy, Tarsem Singh, Radiohead, Fernando Pessoa, Helmut Lang , Raymond Lemstra, Ted Parker, Ytje Veenstra, Pablo… [ Continue reading ]

For Ideas in Movement I was invited to start an experiment with the Samsung Galaxy Tab. I asked Hugo, Raymond and Mathijs to join me to create some kind of ultimate digital escape. Based on augmented reality you… [ Continue reading ]