Renonyx

renonyx (Reno Nyx, written as one without capitals) (born Reno Voet, vd, December 26, 1971) is an Dutch photographer, designer and artist. Known for his life performance photography and art collective 30DII. He first emerged on the Dutch hiphop scene as a rapper/producer. renonyx is also know as the founder of Kiiroo, an internet company that creates the possibility to be intimate over the internet.
Early life
renonyx was born Reno Voet, vd on December 26, 1971, In Amsterdam, The Netherlands to parents Martinus Voet, vd and Christina Veen. When he was around five years old he was introduced to fashion design by his father, who was a designer of women haute couture.
He grew up in a household that was filled with design and music. Which created a wide spectrum of interest of music, design and architecture. Being around a large amount of books of Staatliches Bauhaus and De Stijl gave the young renonyx many thoughts of what he wanted to become when he grew up.
Being influenced by early hip hop, such as "Hip Hop, Be Bop (Don't Stop)" by Man Parrish, and many early hip hop pioneers. He transitioned from breakdance on a cardboard on the street to a little basement studio making his first music steps. In early 1988, he started his own rap group called: Metaphor Ambassadors Demand (for short M.A.D.). While on a trip to New York City with his parents in June 23, 1989, renonyx asked his dad if they could go to Queens, cause he wanted to go to 1212 studio, to ask Paul C to mix the album he was working on. At arriving at the studio, he was told that he just missed Paul C, by a minute. In later reflexion in turned out the Paul C (by seeing photo in the back on Stezo’s album “Crazy Noice”) pointed him in the right direction. Paul C got not long after that, tragically killed.
In 1992, renonyx was signed on Dureco/Dark Torch Record, and released the Metaphor Ambassadors Demand album: On a (Murderous) Journey. renonyx worked under the name R.M.Trev. The Album gave a great start to many performances all over Europe, and even gave the group a chance to perform in New York. The group went on stage at The Tunnel and bOb Bar. While working on this album, renonyx noticed his love for the music part went deeper than the vocal side, and started producing for many other groups and individuals of one being Starscream, for whom he produced the whole album realised on EMI and fully lived performed with a band with the band’s director, Bas Bron. While working on the music, renonyx studied graphic design and photography. So while growing in the music scene he also gain more attention for his design for events and album covers, and he came at the point he wanted to grow further and decided to put music on the second place. Also cause he found that making elements visual became easier and quicker to him. So the switch was an gentle step.
Photography
When first started more as a side thing while doing his design study, he quickly gained success with life performance photography, of many Dutch and international (mainly Hip Hop) artists, doing shoots with artists like: La Melodia, Black Marvel, Dutch Soil, EPMD, Ultramagnetic MC's, Kool Keith, RMX Crew, AmmoLab, J-Zone, Keith Murray, Pharoahe Monch and many other. While living in New York City renonyx did a lot of photography for model agencies, like Wilhelmina Models and others, and experienced a different way at approaching the subject and focusing more on the setting. It triggered the beginning of the art photography and the start for the art collective 30DII.
In 2004 while being in New York City, renonyx sets up a spontaneous interview with Ced Gee, producer of many greats hiphop production, and member of the legendary hiphop group Ultramagnetic MC's. The whole video was shot on a Samsung camera that had the possibility to film, no extra microphone. It was edited into a interview of 10 minutes, and displace a view into the past of hiphop. The interview was called “Dusted” to reflect on the past.
In 2004 renonyx made a short movie together Stephan Miras called “Space Stuff” and won the audience price for best short movie at the Paradiso Short Film Festival.
In 2012 renonyx co-edited and color-edited the short art movie Satisfaction by Nezá Agnes Momirski. This movie gives an uncomfortable relationship between two men talking about this to do before they die, revering to dead with the word satisfaction.
Art Collective 30DII
in 2009 renonyx started an art collective together with Nezá Agnes Momirski called: 30 Days Immediate Inference (later renamed simply: 30DII) which monitors a person for a period of 30 days and can’t show their work to others, neither share or express themselves about it till the project is done. The whole project was released in book form, in 2010. In 2012 the follow up to the first book was made with a new collective of people from all over the world, summing up to 17 people in total, it was called 30DII: I Was Asked To Answer.
In 2014 the third book was started with a new collective of 19 people. That same year the book was released. For this book renonyx created a short movie, starring Renée Royers called: Prompt. The short movie reflects on the fear and curiosity of human beings. For the movie renonyx dug deep in his own emotion to get this cold movie out. For the music renonyx composed music from sounds taken from the Japanese composer Stomu Yamashta, to reconstruct into a new soundtrack.
It has been state that a fourth a final book will be made around 2017. But more details about have still to be released.
Kiiroo
renonyx is the founder of Kiiroo. “The journey of Kiiroo was all about finding that sweet spot between technology, emotion, intimacy, curiosity and identity” said renonyx in an interview for Gadget Flow in 2014. In 2008 while living in New York City, he was sitting next to a person at the lunch break, who was watching the movie on a laptop. It gave him the idea for the product during the intimate scene between Sylvester Stallone and Sandra Bullock, connecting helmets to engage in virtual love making. This gave him the idea to bring this to reality. After intensive research, he first gave up and put it in the freezer. It was not until 2012 that he picked it up again, and started to work it out fully. April, 2013 the company was a reality. In 2014, Kiiroo won the award for the Best New Pleasure Product Company at XBIZ Awards. In 2016 Kiiroo won an award at LAL-Expo and followed with the YNOT Award. renonyx based the design idea on early works of Dieter Rams. with minimalistic design, and functionality in the center.
Paul C McKasty, the movie
renonyx is currently working on the preparation of the full length movie about the live of "Paul C" McKasty.

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