Meet Ates Isildak | Photographer & Videographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ates Isildak and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ates, let’s start by talking about what inspires you?
I’m inspired most by people. I used to think art was creating something from nothing. But now I find it so much more fulfilling to collaborate with others, starting with just a seed of an idea. Whether it be portrait work with a single model, or a music video with a five-piece band, there’s always this reciprocal magic happening, visions mutate, new inspiration comes, friendships are formed.Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Photographer and videographer in South Florida. There’s a phrase in my head when I think of what I’ve been working on over the last few years: “Practicing our own magic, summoning only ourselves”. Through photo and video collaborations I’m trying to materialize that magical spark that comes from celebrating what was once taboo – giving shape to secrets, flaunting repressions. Recent recipient of South Florida Cultural Consortium, which gave me the opportunity to have my portrait work shown at the NSU Art Museum in Ft Lauderdale and next the Cultural Council of Palm Beach. Creating music videos that have premiered on: Troma, Spin Magazine, Flood Magazine, Office Magazine, Consequence of Sound, Noisey, Vice. Working with amazing local and national bands. | Two short films: Domestica, Omnipain | Working with amazing peers and leaders in the South Florida community | Being a voice in the local art and music community and working towards creating a space for the LGBTQ community.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
A great night out for me in 2019, before COVID and social distancing, would have been a trip down to Wynwood, to Gramps and then Electric Pickle (while it was still open), wandering into whatever those places happened to be featuring on a given night, all the DJs and bands were always great, and it was even better when it was unexpected. Always running into friends randomly, eating something cheap, drinking something fancy, wandering around, dancing all night, hopefully crashing at a friends house to skip an hour long drive back to West Palm Beach at 4am. Some of my favorite shows ever have been at Gramps: Dead Meadow, Les filles de Illighadad, ESG. Moodymann at Electric Pickle was one of the most fun nights of my life. Thankfully for those that miss (or missed) Electric Pickle, they can still check out ATV records, where I saw Moodyman a second time.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There’s a Miami collective called (F)EMPOWER @fempowermia and there are creators that belong to that collective and supporters of that collective that I was lucky enough to work with in the past that are constant inspirations to me and were integral for shaping the direction of my work. Akia Dorsainvil, Mumbi O’Brien, Tama Gucci, Kevin Laurore, & Natalie Foucauld, amazing artists I hope to work with again one day.

Website: https://www.strangewaverecords.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/strangewaave/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ates.isildak/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqwlIZstQupSBtmMImqj2pdFAOpF6a0FO

Image Credits
Matt Walker Lia Souza Leaf Mumbi O’Brien Kevin Laurore