How I Work: Max Siedentopf

The artist, photographer, designer and director talks to CR about working at speed, the joy of not being confined by one discipline, how he balances the commercial with the personal, and why his spirit animal is a cross between a chameleon and a dung beetle

London-based, multidisciplinary artist Max Siedentopf has an eye for the unusual and puts his creative talents to good use across video, photography, sculpture, design and everything in between. 

For seven years he was creative director at agency KesselsKramer where he was made partner at the tender age of just 25. In 2020, he left to conquer the world of freelance and has found himself working with brands including TikTok, Gucci, BBC, Vans and many, many more. He has also begun to make a name for himself as a director, with one of his most notable projects being the music video for Sigrid’s Mine Right Now, in which he played a starring role

Alongside a plethora of funny and experimental personal projects, Siedentopf is also founder of the magazine Ordinary, a quarterly(ish) fine art photography publication that features artists from around the world who are tasked with making an ordinary object into something extraordinary. Here Siedentopf tells CR about his unorthodox creative process, why working across so many mediums suits him and how he balances commercial projects with personal pursuits. 

The Meaning of Life, 2021. All images and videos: Max Siedentopf