Bastien Marlin "Iretge" / 5W's!
"Iretge", or "heretic" in the Occitan language, "as in, one who caresses the margin, on the verge of sliding out of the frame due to the bubbling of their relentless need to live freely", is the title of the book (available here) telling the journey of artists ADEC, BROKOVICH and ARKANE, gone to paint, perform, and build in random locations along the way, Accompanied by RAMOUL on photographer's duty and BEN BELLO whose ears are always wide open, ensuring that he is ready to transcribe any quote, anecdote, conversation that might blossom throughout thE journey. leaving From the Vercors region with the vicinity of Carcassonne in my mind all the while passing through the Cévennes and Sètes, obvious they were bound to run into flesh-and-blood "iretges", and Bastien Marlin was one of them. Long-time skater and D.I.Y. enthusiast, he is just the iretge we needed, so why deprive ourselves of a small interview?
LIVE Skateboard Media: Why the D.I.Y. is so interesting to you?
Bastien Marlin: I find D.I.Y. interesting because it's built by skaters for skaters. It's an alternative between the parks and the street. It is also a way of expressing oneself.
LSM: What is your definition of "Iretge"? And what's happened to the spot mentioned in the book since then?
Bastien: "Iretge" equals freedom, "The return to the wild man" as they say.
ph: Felix Maurugeon
It's freedom; forgetting rules and norms.
The spot mentioned in the book is still there. It has been enlarged and modified. Unfortunately, we had to cover the original art done on it for a good cause.
LSM: Where is (or was) the D.I.Y. spot you are most proud of?
Bastien: I would say "l'Ecluse", because it was one of the first big spots I built in unique and original settings.
The spot was at the end of a small, drained canal bordering the Hérault.
The canal overlooked a small ditch as well as narrow steep banks, making it a spot of sorts to begin with...
Once the D.I.Y. was built, it completely transformed the spot, banks added value to the layout of the corridor, and multiplied the possibilities of tricks of any kind.
The fact that it no longer exists makes it literally legendary; R.I.P.!
"I wanted to come up with a clean video part
on the trick selection meter.
Which takes time!"
LSM: Have you been, or are you planning on working on anything new?
Bastien: Yes always! I have plenty of ideas and projects, but one lifetime will never suffice...
Right now I'm finishing renovating the Tunnel, among other things. The Tunnel borders highway A75 and has always been skateable; originally it's a full pipe. But it used to be stale, so I invested the place - which isn't easy to skate due to the narrow diameter, and even less easy to build stuff at that won't interfere with the lines.
Anyway, in its current state the spot is still better than it used to be!
LSM: By the way, in your latest part there is no D.I.Y. spot it seems; did you want to especially focus on pure street? How long did the filming process take?
Bastien: [laughs] In fact there is one, but it goes unnoticed because the clip was filmed at night.
I spend most of my time skating the streets. It just so happens that my coverage has been much more prominent on DIY spots than on street spots.
ph: Felix Maurugeon
The streets are my favorite playground. Filming process probably took three years, which is the longest I've ever had the nerve to sit on footage.
I wanted to come up with a clean video part on the trick selection meter. Which takes time!
You can order "Iretge", the book, from here!
