Vena Kava
Encyclopedia
Vena Kava born in the Carpathian
region of Eastern Europe
is an American
artist
known mostly for her fantasy art
photography and mixed media, singing, and modeling work. Kava originally studied experimental filmmaking at the prestigious San Francisco Art Institute. Kava currently works/lives in between Boston
, San Francisco, and Europe
.
). Becoming frustrated with the what she saw as painting's limitation, she abandoned it and moved to Boston to attend Emerson College
with a masters specialty in film production. Later in the year, being disappointed with the program, Kava moved to San Francisco and took up experimental and Avant-garde
Filmmaking. She decided that the San Francisco Art Institute
, a School known for its Laissez-faire
attitude towards art, was the only school in America that can offer her the flexibility that she needed in order to fulfill her desire for true experimentation. "[T]here was so much potential I felt in San Francisco, the East Coast Art scene during this time was not really working for me.”
She spent the rest of her college career focused on Filmmaking being heavily influenced by filmmaker Kenneth Anger
with films such as Lucifer Rising, Invocation of My Demon Brother, Scorpio Rising and also filmmaker George Kuchar
who taught at SFAI. She also started taking classes in New Genre, which was a major available at the school. This short exploration opened up doors and led Vena Kava into the world of performance art
.
Fest, Kava also formed her own performance band, which was musically driven and had a punk rock visage and a 60”s cult film vibe. The performance troop did not last very long due to internal conflicts between members.
,” in which she led, performed, and sang. In 2007 the band released a Goth/Metal/ Experimental album titled “Welcome to the Chapel Perilous.” Later in 2007, Kava moved to Boston and formed Killing Moon a Death Metal band while Kava incorporating the death growl into her vocal style, which was also proved to be a big hit among her fans. The band then quickly grew in popularity
.
Carpathian
Carpathian may refer to:*Carpathian Mountains of Central and Eastern Europe*Carpathian Convention on sustainable development in that region*Carpathian Shepherd Dog, a Romanian sheep dog*Subcarpathian Voivodeship, an administrative division of Poland...
region of Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
known mostly for her fantasy art
Fantasy art
Fantasy art is a genre of art that depicts magical or other supernatural themes, ideas, creatures or settings. While there is some overlap with science fiction, horror and other speculative fiction art, there are unique elements not generally found in other forms of speculative fiction art...
photography and mixed media, singing, and modeling work. Kava originally studied experimental filmmaking at the prestigious San Francisco Art Institute. Kava currently works/lives in between Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, San Francisco, and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Early years
Vena Kava was born somewhere in Eastern Europe. Shortly after her birth, her family moved to Poland where she spent most of her early childhood. When she was 7 years old her family moved to the United States where they have been ever since.Filmmaking
Kava became interested in the visual arts at college and started painting, taking classes at the(Rhode Island School of DesignRhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design is a fine arts and design college located in Providence, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1877. Located at the base of College Hill, the RISD campus is contiguous with the Brown University campus. The two institutions share social, academic, and community resources and...
). Becoming frustrated with the what she saw as painting's limitation, she abandoned it and moved to Boston to attend Emerson College
Emerson College
Emerson College is a private coeducational university located in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a "school of oratory," Emerson is "the only comprehensive college or university in America dedicated exclusively to communication and the arts in a liberal arts...
with a masters specialty in film production. Later in the year, being disappointed with the program, Kava moved to San Francisco and took up experimental and Avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
Filmmaking. She decided that the San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute is a school of higher education in contemporary art with the main campus in the Russian Hill district of San Francisco, California. Its graduate center is in the Dogpatch neighborhood. The private, non-profit institution is accredited by WASC and is a member of the...
, a School known for its Laissez-faire
Laissez-faire
In economics, laissez-faire describes an environment in which transactions between private parties are free from state intervention, including restrictive regulations, taxes, tariffs and enforced monopolies....
attitude towards art, was the only school in America that can offer her the flexibility that she needed in order to fulfill her desire for true experimentation. "[T]here was so much potential I felt in San Francisco, the East Coast Art scene during this time was not really working for me.”
She spent the rest of her college career focused on Filmmaking being heavily influenced by filmmaker Kenneth Anger
Kenneth Anger
Kenneth Anger is an American underground experimental filmmaker, occasional actor and author...
with films such as Lucifer Rising, Invocation of My Demon Brother, Scorpio Rising and also filmmaker George Kuchar
George Kuchar
George Kuchar was an American underground film director, known for his "low-fi" aesthetic.-Early life and career:...
who taught at SFAI. She also started taking classes in New Genre, which was a major available at the school. This short exploration opened up doors and led Vena Kava into the world of performance art
Performance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
.
Performance art
Heavily influenced by dark realms of the universe, Kava’s highly visual and edgy performances always drew from the dark side. Performing in San Francisco in such shows as DadaDada
Dada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
Fest, Kava also formed her own performance band, which was musically driven and had a punk rock visage and a 60”s cult film vibe. The performance troop did not last very long due to internal conflicts between members.
Awards
In 2005, Kava was the recipient of one of the prestigious STAND grants from The Film Arts Foundation for independent cinema. She made a short experimental film “She Blow Smoke,” which was highly influenced by Keneth Anger and highlighted some of her early frustrations and personal conflicts.Music
Around the same time in which Kava completed her film, she formed a musical band in San Francisco “WhipKraftWhipKraft
Killing Moon is a Boston, Massachusetts based female-fronted death metal band formally known as WhipKraft. Vena Kava, the lead singer and founder of the band specializes in the death growl.-Discography:*Welcome to the Chapel Perilous...
,” in which she led, performed, and sang. In 2007 the band released a Goth/Metal/ Experimental album titled “Welcome to the Chapel Perilous.” Later in 2007, Kava moved to Boston and formed Killing Moon a Death Metal band while Kava incorporating the death growl into her vocal style, which was also proved to be a big hit among her fans. The band then quickly grew in popularity
Photography
Having a love for all art, Kava experimented with many genres if art, but only a few of them stuck. Photography was one of them, when Kava discovered the beauty of the still image. “[I] have been feeling like everything is moving so fast lately, year after year, even film is too fast for me 24 frames per second is a lot of frames for the eye to consume. Photography was perfect, I can meditate on one frame for days and even months.” Kava works typically by photographing herself in a range of costumes, heavily influenced by Photographer Cindy ShermanCindy Sherman
Cindy Sherman is an American photographer and film director, best known for her conceptual portraits. Sherman currently lives and works in New York City. In 1995, she was the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship. She is represented by Sprüth Magers Berlin London in and Metro Pictures gallery in...
.