Talk Art

We meet poet, artist and filmmaker Julianknxx. We explore themes within his work of inheritance, loss and belonging as he crosses the boundaries between written word, music and visual art.Sierra Leonian artist Julianknxx uses his personal history as a prism to deconstruct dominant perspectives on African art, history, and culture. Rich with symbolism, his work conveys the Black experience of defining and redefining the self, rejecting labels to form new collective narratives.Offering song and music as forms of resistance, the exhibition invokes new understandings of what it means to be caught between, and to be of, multiple places. Choirs and musicians from cities across Europe give voice to a single refrain: ‘We are what’s left of us’, transforming the Curve into a collaborative space of communication. As the philosopher Édouard Glissant has written: ‘you can change with the Other while being yourself, you are not one, you are multiple, and you are yourself.’Julianknxx’s work merges his poetic practice with films and performance; he engages in a form of existential inquiry that at once seeks to find ways of expressing the ineffable realities of human experiences while examining the structures through which we live. In casting his own practice as a ‘living archive’ or an ‘history from below’, Julianknxx draws on West African traditions of oral history to reframe how we construct both local and global perspectives. He does this through a body of work that challenges fixed ideas of identity and unravels linear Western historical and socio-political narratives, attempting to reconcile how it feels to exist primarily in liminal spaces.Follow @JulianKnxxVisit #JulianKnxx’s two new exhibitions @BuroStedelijk, Amsterdam until 24th April and @CAMGulbenkian, Lisbon until 2nd June 2025.Listen to Talk Art: @Spotify or @ApplePodcasts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We meet bestselling writer Shon Faye to discuss her new book Love In Exile and artists she admires: Nan Goldin, The Bloomsbury Group, Bernini, Michelangelo, Pedro Almodóvar's Bad Education and performers including Tom Rasmussen, Madonna and David Hoyle.Shon Faye grew up quietly obsessed with the feeling that love was not for her. Not just romantic love: the secret fear of her own unworthiness penetrated every aspect and corner of her life. It was a fear that would erupt in destructive, counterfeit versions of the real love she craved: addictions and short-lived romances that were either euphoric and fantastical, or excruciatingly painful and unhinged, often both. Faye’s experience of the world as a trans woman, who grew up visibly queer, exacerbated her fears. But, as she confronted her damaging ideas about love and lovelessness, she came to realize that this sense of exclusion is symptomatic of a much larger problem in our culture.Love, she argues, is as much a collective question as a personal one. Yet our collective ideals of love have developed in a society which is itself profoundly sick and loveless; in which consumer capitalism sells us ever new, engrossing fantasies of becoming more loved or lovable. In this highly politicized terrain, boundaries are purposefully drawn to keep some in and to keep others out. Those who exist outside them are ignored, denigrated, exiled.In Love in Exile, Shon Faye shows love is much greater than the narrow ideals we have been taught to crave so desperately that we are willing to bend and break ourselves to fit them. Wise, funny, unsparing, and suffused with a radical clarity, this is a book of and for our times: for seeing and knowing love, in whatever form it takes, is the meaning of life itself.Shon Faye is author of the acclaimed bestseller The Transgender Issue. Her work has been published in, among others, the Guardian, Independent, British Vogue and VICE. Born in Bristol, she now lives in London.As Frieze magazine recently wrote: Shon Faye is one of the most celebrated non-fiction authors in the UK, rising to fame for her discerning prose on culture, relationships and class. Her first book, The Transgender Issue (2021), a provocative treatise on gender identity debates in the UK, was part of her rise to fame. Not only did Faye offer a detailed survey of queer history, but she also indicated why trans-liberation is connected to liberation for all. Her new book of essays, Love in Exile (2025), explores the existential and social challenges of courtship and heartache. Rather than focus solely on the discrimination that many transgender people face, however, the text is a literary memoir that interrogates how ancient and present-day writers conceptualize and dissect love. As a Vogue contributor with her advice column ‘Dear Shon’ (2022–ongoing), host of the podcast Call Me Mother (2021–ongoing) and author of Dazed & Confused Magazine’s ‘Future of Sex’ series (2022–ongoing), she addresses the topic of romance with honesty and poise.Follow @Shon.Faye on InstagramBuy Love in Exile, published by Pengiun.You can also follow @TalkArt for images of all artworks discussed in today's episode. Thanks for listening! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We meet painter Vanessa Raw to discuss her solo show at the Rubell Museum Miami, where she was the 2024 Artist-in-Residence. Vanessa Raw: This is How the Light Gets In marks her first exhibition in the United States, as well as her first institutional show. In these newly commissioned, large-scale works, Raw’s distinctive layered brushwork and expressive use of colour depict a dream-like, all-female world—an earthly paradise where the natural world is benevolent and sentient, and where female desire is central. A former triathlete, Raw’s practiced mastery of her own body transfers to her work on canvas. Her figures are tranquil and at ease but have agency. They revel in the company of each other and in the landscape that is lush and soft and ripe with colour—paradise found.In 2022 Raw took a radical new direction with her work, shifting from traditional portraiture tropes to paint imagined, same-sex, intimate scenes of women in confected landscapes. Surrounded by flowers and trees, sometimes accompanied by fauna too, these suspended moments of blissful intense connections show naked, energised bodies part-merged with each other and the landscapes they are in.Using a heighten palette Raw conveys the intensity of the moment, as well positioning the paintings in the realm of the imaginary. Likewise, the dream-like fluidity of some areas of mark making suggest an altered state of consciousness, a deep human connectivity occurring simultaneously on a physical and spiritual plane. Photographs taken on her daily runs through local nature areas, an activity undertaken with therapeutical escapist intention, are used as source material for her background landscapes binding their confection to meaningful actualities, pulling into the paintings the remembered feeling of oneness with nature.Raw works in a semi-naturalistic style, with an intense focus on the textures of the human form. Her large scale paintings are an eclectic variety of tonal compositions, vibrant and stimulating. Some of her more explicit pieces show the human body engaged in sexual acts or reaching the point of orgasm, whilst others in a more subtle manner showcase the innate sexuality of the feminine form.Born in 1984 in Hexham, England, Raw lives and works in Margate, UK. Vanessa Raw: This is How the Light Gets In is now open in Miami at Rubell Museum.Visit: https://rubellmuseum.org/2024-vanessa-rawFollow @VanessaRaw_ and @RubellMuseumVanessa Raw is represented by Carl Freedman Gallery, Margate. Special thanks to the Don, Mera and Jason Rubell, and Juan Roselione-Valadez at the Rubell Museum, Carl Freedman @CarlFreedmanGallery and Elissa Cray @TKEStudios. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a captivating discussion, legendary artist Peter Berlin shares his journey as a photographer, filmmaker, and gay icon. He reflects on the powerful legacy of his self-portraits and their impact on LGBTQ+ aesthetics since the 1970s. The conversation delves into the challenges of queer visibility, societal taboos, and the evolution of male representation. Peter also teases his upcoming exhibition featuring his iconic works, offering a glimpse into his transformative artistic process and the complex interplay between intimacy, identity, and public perception.

Mickalene Thomas, an internationally celebrated artist known for her large-scale portraits of Black women, discusses her major exhibition at London's Hayward Gallery. She dives into the influence of her childhood memories and the vibrant aesthetics that inform her work. The conversation touches on themes of love, representation, and identity, emphasizing the importance of mentorship and community. Thomas also reflects on the transformative power of art and its connection to personal and cultural narratives, celebrating her unique artistic journey.

We meet artist Carsten Höller for some perceptual playtime to celebrate New Year's Day! We explore Höller’s collection of odd tasks and mischievous game-play.Carsten Höller invites readers to disrupt their daily lives with 336 mind-expanding diversions. They can be played alone, in pairs or in teams, in the street, in bed, on a train, wherever. No props or materials are needed. Just one body, all senses and a willingness to try something new, that’s possibly conceptually or physically challenging, but guaranteed to entertain and to widen the player’s horizons.Some games are more obviously daring than others – unexpectedly shouting ‘bang!’ when your driver’s reversing into a parking space is sure to elicit a reaction – but that’s absolutely the point. Other games involve covertly dropping strange phrases into conversation, executing somersaults (without practice), or plucking hairs from your opponent’s head while they stay poker-faced.Höller’s scientific professional background informs his keenness to create what he calls Influential Environments. He wants to tease the brain while testing its limitations, through activity and passivity, agency and inertia. He conceived his first game with a group of friends in 1992, during a tedious dinner after an exhibition opening. Since then, he has collected and invented ideas, inspired by friends, life, the Surrealists, and Arthur Rimbaud. All games are illustrated with commissioned or pre-existing artworks and photographs. We find portraits by Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin, August Sander, and Nan Goldin next to paintings by Salvador Dalí; snapshots of Joseph Beuys plus son and Donna Haraway plus dog next to appointed pieces by Christine Sun Kim and Anri Sala; film stills by Chantal Akerman, extracts from Shakespeare as well as treasures from Höller’s personal archive—and his mother’s.Edited by Stefanie Hessler and Hans Ulrich Obrist, this book encourages readers to engage in playful yet cerebral experiments that will leave them with a sense of wonder, disorientation, and a subtle smirk on their face.As an artist, Carsten Höller conducts radical experiments. His “Influential Environments” explore alternative scenarios, reimagining possibilities for human behavior and interaction and have been shown in major installations and solo exhibitions internationally over the last two decades. In 2022, he opened his restaurant Brutalisten in Stockholm and presented the third iteration of The Double Club in Los Angeles in 2024. Born in 1961 in Brussels to German parents, Höller currently lives and works in Stockholm and Biriwa, Ghana.Follow @Carsten.Holler on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's the Talk Art CHRISTMAS SPECIAL EPISODE!! Holiday Surprise!!!We meet Russell T Davies OBE, one of the UK’s foremost writers of television drama and television producer. Davies was Head Writer, Showrunner and Executive Producer of Doctor Who when it returned in 2005 and has written many of the new series’ most memorable episodes. He was awarded an OBE in 2008 for services to drama. Born in Swansea, Wales, Davies had aspirations as a comic artist before focusing on being a playwright and screenwriter. We discuss his passion for comic strips and cartoons from Peanuts & Snoopy, Asterix and his childhood passion for drawing which has continued throughout his whole life.Davies other notable works include creating the series Queer as Folk (1999–2000), Bob & Rose (2001), The Second Coming (2003), Casanova (2005), Doctor Who spin-offs Torchwood (2006–2011) and The Sarah Jane Adventures (2007–2011), Cucumber (2015), A Very English Scandal (2018), Years and Years (2019), It's a Sin (2021) and Nolly (2023).Follow @RussellTDavies63HAPPY HOLIDAYS everyone!!! Thanks for listening us for the past 6 years. We will return on New Year's Day with another iconic guest. Until then, have a magical Christmas. Love Russell & Robert Xx Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We meet legendary poet Joelle Taylor.Joelle Taylor is the author of 4 collections of poetry. Her most recent collection C+NTO & Othered Poems won the 2021 T.S Eliot Prize, and the 2022 Polari Book Prize for LGBT authors. C+NTO is currently being adapted for theatre with a view to touring. She is a co- curator and host of Out-Spoken Live at the Southbank Centre, and tours her work nationally and internationally in a diverse range of venues, from Australia to Brazil. She is also a Poetry Fellow of University of East Anglia and the curator of the Koestler Awards 2023. She has judged several poetry and literary prizes including Jerwood Fellowship, the Forward Prize, and the Ondaatje Prize. Her novel of interconnecting stories The Night Alphabet will be published by Riverrun in Spring of 2024. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and the 2022 Saboteur Spoken Word Artist of the Year. Her most recent acting role was in Blue by Derek Jarman, which was directed by Neil Bartlett and featured Russell Tovey, Jay Bernard, and Travis Alabanza. Blue sold out its run across the UK and more dates are expected for the future.Follow @JTaylorTrashVisit: https://joelletaylor.co.uk/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this engaging conversation, acclaimed photographer Robin de Puy shares her journey capturing the complexities of American identity through her project, AMERICAN. She discusses her transformative road trip across the U.S. and the deep connections she formed while photographing diverse individuals. Robin reflects on the power of storytelling in art, her collaboration with WePresent, and the balance between creativity and commercial pressures. Her unique lens reveals how personal narratives challenge common perceptions of America.

It's MIAMI art fair week - we are ready for Art Basel, Untitled, NADA and more! We meet legendary art collecting family THE RUBELL'S!!!! Mera, Don and Jason!!!Don and Mera Rubell started collecting in 1965 while living in New York, acquiring their first work after a studio visit and paying on a modest weekly installment plan. The Rubells grew their collection by looking at art, talking with artists, and trusting their instincts. Their son, Jason Rubell, joined them in 1982 in building the collection, extending the multigenerational family passion for discovering, engaging, and supporting many of today’s most compelling artists. The Rubells moved to Miami in 1992, and together with Jason and their daughter, Jennifer, began developing hotels and an art foundation and museum to house and publicly exhibit their expanding art collection.Since the Rubells’ first acquisition, they’ve amassed one of the most significant and far-ranging collections of contemporary art in the world, encompassing over 7,700 works by more than 1,000 artists—and still growing. The collection is further distinguished by the diversity and geographic distribution of artists represented within it, and the depth of its holdings of works by seminal artists.The Rubells are drawn to emerging and underrecognized artists. They were among the first to acquire work by now-renowned contemporary artists, including Jean-Michel Basquiat, Cecily Brown, Keith Haring, Rashid Johnson, Hayv Kahraman, Jeff Koons, William Kentridge, Yoshitomo Nara, Cindy Sherman, Yayoi Kusama, Kara Walker, Purvis Young, and Mickalene Thomas, among many others. They continue to vigorously collect by visiting studios, art spaces, fairs, galleries, biennials, and museums, and by talking with artists, curators, and gallerists. If the work grabs them, they dig deeper—conducting intensive research before they welcome it into their collection.Jason Rubell started collecting contemporary art in 1983 at the age of 14, acquiring the painting Immigrants from then-emerging George Condo via Pat Hearn Gallery. At first supporting his collecting habit by stringing tennis rackets, Jason’s early support of artists grew into a life-defining passion. Jason’s studies at Duke and experience with organizing and touring the exhibition of his collection were instrumental in the Rubell family’s decision to open their collection to the public, ensuring it would serve as a broader resource for audiences to encounter contemporary art and the ideas it explores. In 1993, the Rubells’ passion became their mission when they opened the Rubell Family Collection/Contemporary Art Foundation in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood. The establishment of the RFC pioneered a new model for sharing private collections with the public and spurred the development of Wynwood as one of the leading art and design districts in the U.S. After nearly 30 years, the collection relocated to the Allapattah neighborhood in December 2019 and was renamed the Rubell Museum to emphasize its public mission and expanded access for audiences. The opening of the Rubell Museum DC in October 2022 further deepened the family’s commitment to sharing their collection as a public resource, providing opportunities for residents and visitors of the nation’s capital to engage with today’s most compelling artists.Follow: @RubellMuseum on Instagram.Vanessa Raw: This is How the Light Gets In, the Rubell's Artist in Residence for 2024 opens on December 2nd.Visit: http://rubellmuseum.org/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.