Name: Luther Price

Upcoming Screenings: Luther Price: “Untitled #9” at Walker Art Center, February 1 - 28, 2013; “An Evening with Luther Price: Films, Slides, and Conversation” at Walker Art Center, February 1, 2013

Age/Occupation/City: 

born 1962........january 26th......in Mass......the night my aunt sally took an overdose of sleeping pills..........37 sominex........and red wine........she was my mother’s younger sister...........she died at 23.........the day i was born.......my death mother..........she was very beautiful..........i have the powder blue suit she died in...........it has a wine stain down the front of it .........i don’t think she meant to kill herself........she crawled from her apartment in cambridge , mass,............died at the hospital.........while at the same time,.....i was being born into this world..............i died when i was 23 too..........i was shot in nicaragua in 1985............while on an artist cultural brigade..............it wasn’t just my guts that spilled out that day on the warm ceramic tiles .....on that balcony of the bombed out mansion we were staying at............the morning we were due to fly back to boston .........june 29th 1985...........i died that day........and as they say .......you see your life flash by..........well it did.........and i saw my aunt sally...........and then i knew what i had always known............she was always with me.....................but that was 28 years ago..............i still don’t know how i survived ..............if i had been shot anywhere else ,....i wouldn’t have.............but my guts are all screwed up.........i was shot through my hip and stomach.......my right leg is paralyzed ......and i live with constant pain.......but to top that off ,...the US...GOVERNMENT TOOK MY PASSPORT AWAY FOR REPATRIATION .....BACK TO BOSTON , MASS.............WERE I SPENT TWO MONTHS IN THE HOSPITAL.......I RETURNED BACK TO MASS ART....THAT FALL ON CRUTCHES........WITH A HOLE IN MY SIDE , STUFFED WITH GAUZE.........THE DRESSING HAD TO BE CHANGED THREE TIMES A DAY, SO I USED THE NURSE’S OFFICE FOR THAT ,....THE ONLY STERILE PLACE........FOR THAT..............AS THE SEMESTER WENT ON ,I BECAME VERY SICK....THE WOUND WAS NOT HEALING................SO DURING XMAS BREAK I ADMITTED MYSELF BACK INTO THE HOSPITAL........THEY FOUND THE BULLET......AND REMOVED IT ...........IT WAS LODGED IN THE DARKNESS OF MY HIP ........NEVER CAME UP ON THE X-RAYS..........THE US OFFICIALS CONFISCATED MY MEDICAL RECORDS FROM NICARAGUA FROM THE DOCTOR WHO TRAVELED WITH ME BACK TO THE STATES.............SO , I NEVER HAD A CHANCE........THE DOCTORS NEVER KNEW THE BULLET WAS STILL INSIDE ME.......ROTTING AWAY MY BONE AND GUTS ........KILLING ME SLOWLY..........BY THIS TIME,....MUCH OF MY HIP HAD TURNED TO A PUSSY MUSH...........AND A LARGE PART OF MY LOWER INTESTINE HAD TO BE REMOVE AS WELL...........MY RIGHT LEG HAD GONE INTO COMPLETE ATROPHY...........AND THE NERVE DAMAGE WAS BEYOND REPAIR...................BUT THE GOOD THING WAS,.......AFTER THEY TOOK THE BULLET OUT ........MY WOUND COMPLETELY HEALED IN 9 DAYS.................I WENT BACK TO SCHOOL IN THE SPRING SEMESTER.....STILL ON CRUTCHES............AND COMPLETED MY LAST LARGE SCULPTURE PIECE............‘EAT FUCK LIVE SHIT WANT NEED’........1986........11 OVER LIFE-SIZED.......HUMAN AND ANIMAL FIGURES .......MADE OF PLASTIC WITH A SKIN OF NEWSPAPER.........WALL WORK...........4 FT X 8 FT PANELS ..........AFTER THAT .......I BEGAN TO WORK IN VIDEO............I CREATED A CHARACTER THAT I BECAME CALLED ‘THE CUNT’..............THIS WAS A PERIOD OF TIME WHERE I BEGAN TO INVESTIGATE MY DOMESTIC PAST..............AND HOW MY MOTHER LIVED HER LIFE AS A SLAVE...............SHE WASHED CLOTHES BY HAND................TO THE POINT THAT HER HANDS LOOKED LIKE THEY BELONGED TO A 108-YEAR-OLD WOMAN.............WE FINALLY GOT A WASHING MACHINE......AND I THINK OUR FIRST COLOR TV .................BEFORE THAT ,.....EVERYTHING WAS BLACK AND WHITE...................

We’re conducting this questionnaire over email, and have been told that you use a stream-of-consciousness style in writing, not dissimilar to the way your films, through their mix of found footage and your own stagings, can be like stray thoughts gathered together. Is there an underlying structure to your art?

Many of your around 200 films exist as only one copy. Because you scratch, burn, and dye them, they can even change from one screening to the next. Film itself is something of a dying art. Do you believe your art and the medium are ephemeral?

You got your start with Super-8 film and then shifted to 16mm, but you’ve recently begun to experiment with slides, exhibited for the first time in the Whitney Biennial. You build them up with dirt and detritus like ants, sprinkles, tape, and hair. Sometimes, you even bury them in the ground to rot. What creative power do you see in this kind of decay?

Has one of your films ever totally wrecked a projector or melted during a screening?

[Questions answered as one response:]

................WELL,...........I THINK I GET A BAD RAP..........IT’S BECAUSE OF THE INKBLOTS AND THE GARDEN FILMS............ALL MY FILM WORK IS ORIGINAL.......I HAVEN’T MADE A COPY OR PRINT SINCE 1995...........THAT CAME ABOUT BECAUSE MOST OF THE GREAT MOM AND POP LABS WERE FORCED TO SHUT DOWN.......AND MOST OF THE BIG LABS WERE FREAKED OUT BY ANYTHING THAT WAS NOT COMMERCIAL...........THIS ,........BOTH PHYSICAL...........WORKING OF THE FILM AS WELL THEY WOULD HAVE A SAY IN WHAT AND WHAT WAS NOT APPROPRIATE AS FAR AS CONTENT ........ MY FILMS WERE RENDERED .......TOO COMPLICATED TO DO A STRAIGHTFORWARD PRINT OR THE SUBJECT MATTER WAS AT ISSUE .............MUCH OF MY WORK WAS DEEMED PORNO...............SO ,....THESE LABS WOULDN’T EVEN DEAL WITH ME..........GONE WERE THE DAYS WHEN A GREAT TECH GUY WOULD TAKE YOUR FILM AND UNDERSTAND THE ART OF IT ........AND IN THE END BECOME A COLLABORATOR WITH IT IN THE PROCESS.........AND A WONDERFUL PRINT WOULD COME OUT OF IT .........I MISS THOSE DAYS................BUT , LEFT IN THE DUST .............I MOVED ON ..........AND TRIED TO MAKE MORE PROJECTION-READY FILMS.........FILMS THAT WOULD BE ABLE TO RUN THROUGH A PROJECTOR..............MULTIPLE TIMES .......AND STAND THE TEST OF TIME...............I’VE ALWAYS HAD GOOD CRAFT IN MY WORK ...., SO THAT WAS NO PROBLEM...........I JUST NEEDED TO STAY AWAY FROM MAKING ‘A FRANKENSTEIN MONSTER’................WORK THE FILM ........BUT , STILL AT THE POINT WHERE IT COULD RIDE THROUGH THE PROJECTOR AS A PROJECTION-READY FILM..................WITH THIS ,....I JUST NEEDED TO MAINTAIN GOOD CRAFT IN SPLICING ........BUT WITH THE INK BLOTS,.......THE ELEMENT OF MATERIAL IS NOW PAINT AND INK..................IT’S A GIVEN THAT BECAUSE THEY ARE ORIGINAL FILMS, THEY WILL LEAVE SOME RESIDUAL MATTER IN THE PROJECTOR.............THAT’S WHAT Q-TIPS ARE FOR..................BUT I USED THIS WONDERFUL INK THAT DRIES REALLY QUICK......SO YOU CAN ROLL IT OUT AND WORK AS YOU GO..........THE THING IS,........ONCE IT DRIED , IT LEFT A POWDERY DUST ON THE SURFACE...................SO ,......I BEGAN HEARING THAT THESE FILMS WERE PROBLEMATIC..............PROJECTORS............WERE NOT HAPPY AND PROJECTIONISTS ..........WERE VERY UNHAPPY.................I READ SOMETHING ONLINE ....SAYING ........‘THE UNPROJECTABLE FILMS OF LUTHER PRICE’...............I RAN FILMS THROUGH MY PROJECTOR AND MY PROJECTOR DIED ................AFTER RUNNING SEVERAL FILMS THROUGH IT..............I REALIZED THIS INK DUST POWDER FORMED.................AT THIS POINT , I KNEW WHAT THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT............IT TOOK MANY Q-TIPS TO CLEAN MY PROJECTOR BEFORE IT COULD RUN AGAIN.............BUT THAT DIDN’T SOLVE THE PROBLEM.....................I HAD ALMOST 50 INKBLOT FILMS SITTING ON MY SHELF..............THAT WERE NOW UNPROJECTABLE............................AS WELL , MY GARDEN FILMS.............FILM FOOTAGE , THAT WENT INTO THE GROUND............IN FALL AND DUG UP IN THE SPRING..................ROTTED FILMS , WITH BEAUTIFUL DISTORTION AND COLOR....................I WOULD OF COURSE TAKE THEM IN AND WASH THEM OFF IN MY KITCHEN SINK............THEN DRY THEM IN THE SUN .......BUT STILL ............A SLUDGE OF GRIT WOULD REMAIN ON THE SURFACE AND THEN THROUGH PROJECTION,...............WOULD BUILD UP IN THE SPROCKET WHEELS OF THE PROJECTOR .............AND LEAVE A TAR-LIKE SUBSTANCE.................NOT GOOD ....NOT GOOD AT ALL..................ALL THIS NEW WORK.......AND IT WOULD REMAIN ON MY SHELF....................BUT I HAVE GOOD FRIENDS ..............THEY DIDN’T GIVE UP ON THE FILMS AND WOULD SCREEN THEM EVEN SO.................ED .....PATRICK AND MARK..............IT WASN’T UNTIL LAST YEAR.............I FELT I HAD TO TRY SOMETHING ................I FOUND THAT WITH THE INKBLOTS ................, I COULD WASH THEM WITH COLD WATER , TO GET RID OF THAT RESIDUAL DUST...............I FOUND THAT HOT WATER REMOVED THE ARTWORK............AFTER THIS PROCESS,....MY FILMS WERE CLEAN AS A WHISTLE......................AND AFTER THEY WERE DRY AND REELED UP................., I CHECKED ALL THE SPLICES..................CLEANED THEM UP .........AND THEY WERE READY TO GO OUT INTO THE WORLD....................I DID THE SAME WITH MY GARDEN FILMS .........I DON’T THINK THE PROJECTIONISTS HATE ME ANYMORE............... ‘SALLY FIELDS’

Describe a typical day in your life as an artist.

.....................WELL......A DAY IN LUTHER’S LIFE................IT DEPENDS ON WHAT I DID THE NIGHT BEFORE..........MOST TIMES ............YOU WRAP IT UP ...............AND YOU TAKE THOSE UNANSWERED .........UNRESOLVED QUESTIONS WITH YOU..................YOU THINK ABOUT FOOD BUT IT’S TOO LATE.............AND IF YOU TRY TO EAT, YOU CAN’T ANYWAY................KAREN CARPENTER AND I WOULD HAVE BEEN FRIENDS................ONLY , I LIKE FOOD AND WANT TO EAT................I LOVE TO COOK...........FOR MY FRIENDS ...............BUT I MOSTLY LIKE TO WATCH GUYS EAT.............. SEXY.............BUT I HARDLY EAT.................BUT I STILL HAVE A FAT STOMACH , AFTER MY GUN SHOT.................LOST THE WALL OF MUSCLE THAT HOLDS IT ALL TOGETHER.............SO I HAVE A BULGE ..............I WORK MOSTLY ALL DAY....................THINKING ABOUT THINGS AND STINKING IT UP................I LIKE TO HAVE THE TV ON ..............I ONLY WATCH INVESTIGATIVE TV.....................THEN I SIT AND WORK ALL DAY ..................BECAUSE CUTTING FILM .............AND..........FILM MANIPULATION IS NOT A STAND UP JOB.................PERFECT FOR ME................BECAUSE I MOAN AND GROAN WITH PAIN..............BUT MY THREE STRAY CATS,.........GURLY................MR. GREY AND CARTOON............KEEP ME IN LINE...................THEY ALWAYS WANT SOMETHING...............SO I HEAR A SCRATCH AT THE DOOR ......AND IT’S ONE OF THEM....SOMETIMES , ALL THREE ..................THE KIDS ARE GOOD ..............‘DORIS WISHMAN’’’’’’’’’’’’’’,............I’M JUST TRYING TO FIND MYSELF THROUGH MY WORK ....................EACH DAY , BRINGS A NEW DESTINATION..................AND I’M UP FOR IT ............, IF I GET UP..................SOME DAYS , I CAN’T GET OUT OF BED THESE DAYS ..............TOO MUCH PAIN...............I MADE A NICE BED NEST.................WITH A PRINCESS AND THE PEA IDEA ............., I WENT OUT AND GOT LAYERS OF FOAM ...............TO LINE MY BED ...................OVER MY SAGGY FUTON...............I NEED A NEW NICE BED AND A TV....................AND THEN I’LL BE HAPPY .............I MAY EVEN ORDER OUT FOR KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN ......AND DO IT UP BY GETTING THE WHIPPED MASHED POTATOS AND EXTRA GRAVY,...................EAT .............AT ...........MY TV DINNER TABLE ...............AND WATCH ‘LOCKED UP ABROAD’ .................OR ‘ANCIENT ALIENS’...................THEN VOMIT IT ALL UP IN MY KITCHEN SINK AND TOILET....................UNTIL THERE IS NOTHING LEFT BUT AN EMPTY PIT IN MY STOMACH................................SO I DON’T THINK I’LL DO THAT...........ALTHOUGH  I DO HAVE A CRAVING FOR CALAMARI................BUT THEY NEVER HAVE IT ANYWAY ................VERY TOP SECRET ...........PERHAPS ONE ORDER ...............SOMETIMES NO ORDER ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

.................that got me thinking ,....so i called ‘tings’......and they actually had fried squid.........so , i put in three orders.................mr, grey is saying things ...................he wants to go outside but it’s raining...............the cartoon is content in ..............my studio back room ...........have not seen Gurly yet though.....................IT’S A GOOD NIGHT FOR ALL THE KIDS TO STAY IN..............CAUSE...........IT’S RAINING OUTSIDE ........AND CATS HATE RAIN......................’GURLY JUST CAME IN ......DRIED HIM OFF WITH A TOWEL..............HIS BROTHER, MR. GREY DID ALLEY CAT SONGS WITH HIM...........ANYWAY , MY DELIVERY OF FRIED SQUID SHOULD BE HERE SOON.......I’M NOT WORKING TONIGHT BECAUSE THE ELECTRIC IN MY HOUSE IS SCREWED UP AND THE ELECTRICIAN  IS COMING OVER AT 8 AM...........TO FIX THE PROBLEM...............SO TONIGHT , I’M JUST HAVING A BOY’S NIGHT IN .................MY GOODNESS ,..................HOW CUTE WAS THAT GUY................FRIED SQUID IN THE RAIN WITH A YUMMY CUT ASIAN GUY ,....HANDING YOU A BROWN PAPER BAG FULL OF DELICIOSO...........TOO BAD HE HAD TO GO BACK TO WORK......................I LIKED HIS TAN BROWN WOOL HAT............SO ......................I WAKE UP.................EITHER ....ONE OF THE CATS WANTS TO GO OUT OR GET IN................HAVE COFFEE........THINK ABOUT FOOD BUT DON’T EAT ..............I MAKE GOOD EGGS TOO.............LOOK IN THE MIRROR IN DISGUST...............AS I TAKE MY MORNING PISS...............BRUSH MY TEETH AND GAG AT THE THOUGHT OF ANOTHER DAY...............THE ROOMS GET SMALLER................THE TIME BECOMES SHORTER..................THE DUST IS THICKER................THE OCEAN ,...OUTSIDE MY DOOR IS CHURNING FOR SOMETHING,.................JUST WAITING..............TO CONSUME................I TAKE A PEEK , OUTSIDE MY FENCE................JUST TO SEE WHAT IT IS LIKE OUTSIDE...........BUT ONLY FOR A MINUTE.....................SOMETIMES THE TIDE IS LOW AND I CAN SMELL THE RESTITUTION OF THE SEA LEFTOVER ...............OR THE ROARING OF THE WAVES THAT WILL EVENTUALLY BRAVE THE EARTH AND TAKE MY HOME...................I LOOK AT THE SEA AND THE SHORE................AND FIND ROCKS WITH FACES IN THEM......................AND I THINK ...............PERHAPS THIS IS ALL BIGGER THAN WE THINK................PERHAPS WE SHOULD JUST LIVE.............AFTER ALL THAT WAS WHAT WE WERE BORN TO DO.................AND WITH THAT...............A VISION..................A SIGHT...........NO SKIN OFF MY BACK..................I JUST WANT TO SEE...............FEEL AND BE REAL..................AND IF SOMETHING MATERIAL COMES FROM THAT ,.......................AN OBJECT OF SOME KIND,....................FROM THE THOUGHTS OF THE DAY.......................IT WILL HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF THIS AND A LITTLE BIT OF THAT IN IT.................AND THEN THE DAY STARTS OVER AGAIN................................

What’s the last show that you saw?

THE LAST SHOW...................I OPENED MY BACK WINDOW..............AND LET THE LIGHT IN ONLY BECAUSE , MR, GREY IS NOW AN INSIDE CAT..........HE SHOWED UP 10 DAYS AFTER THANKSGIVING............COMPLETELY MUTILATED...................ALMOST DIED ................SO MR. GREY STAYS IN NOW ............I TAKE HIM OUT FOR FRESH AIR THOUGH................I WORK A LOT ....................I WORK ALL THE TIME...............SO I DON’T GO OUT MUCH................LAST SHOW I SAW............................ART/.....................BUT I’M SURE I SAW SOMETHING ..................SOMETHING REAL............NOT SAYING ART IS NOT REAL............I’VE SEEN SOME GOOD WORK................I LICKED A TOULOUSE-LAUTREC PAINTING WHEN NO ONE WAS LOOKING IN 1982................IN PARIS.................

What’s the last show that surprised you? Why?

................i always say that nothing will surprise me.............but the thing is ,.................there is always something..............nothing in art though ,...since ‘UN CHAT AMORE’ .............A LOT OF LOVE IN THAT ONE................KENNETH ANGER TOO.............I FOUND.WITH HIM ..............AN ‘HONESTY’..................OF MALE-ON-MALE LOVE ...................I LOVE LOOKING AT GUYS’ ASSES............AND EVEN BETTER IF THEIR FLESH AND MINE COME INTO CONTACT.................I WORSHIP MEN .............. I LOVE MEN........................THEY AMAZE ME ..............BUT KURT KREN ............ON THE OTHER HAND ...........AS WELL AS STAN BRAKHAGE.....NEVER REALLY SEXUALIZE MEN................IT’S MORE ABOUT VAGINA .......AND I LOVE THEM BOTH VERY MUCH ...................GOT TO MEET BOTH OF THEM..................KURT WAS VERY SWEET..............FROM HIS FILMS.......I THOUGHT HE WOULD BE A MONSTER BUT HE WAS A DEAR HEART ...............I LIKED HIM .....VERY MUCH...............AND HE KNEW MY FILMS TOO...........I WAS VERY SAD TO HEAR HE HAD DIED ..........................BUT HE DIED IN HIS HOMELAND...........RESPECTED BY HIS PEERS,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,AND STAN..............I CAN’T BELIEVE HE KNEW WHO I WAS .................BUT HE INVITED ME TO BOULDER.............TO SHOW MY WORK................HE DIED LESS THAN TWO YEARS LATER..............TRAGIC...................OUR GRANDFATHER.....................BUT WHILE WATCHING THE ACADEMY AWARDS,................WHEN THEY SHOW ALL WHO HAVE DIED THAT YEAR.................WHEN STAN CAME UP ,.................EVERYONE STOOD UP TO CELEBRATE HIM..........HIS IMPRINT WAS THERE ON EVERYONE .................HE WAS OUR GIFT ................

What’s your favorite place to see art?

........................THE SMFA IN BOSTON HAS A WONDERFUL EGYPTIAN COLLECTION........I JUST LOVE IT.................BUT IF I COULD ................I’D LOVE TO GO BACK TO NAPLES  , ITALY...........AND SEE POMPEII.........................

What’s the most indispensable item in your studio?

......I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT MY FILM SPLICER AND TAPE.........THEY GO HAND-IN-HAND..................

Where are you finding ideas for your work these days?

...............I’M NOT SURE ..................YES YOU FIND IDEAS BUT I THINK ,............BUT I THINK IF YOU INVOLVE YOURSELF IN WORK ,....THE IDEAS WILL COME TO YOU.........

Do you collect anything?

YES...........BUT SOME THINGS SHOULD BE KEPT SECRET TOO...........I MAKE A LOT OF WORK .............SO I DON’T HAVE ROOM TO COLLECT

What’s the last artwork you purchased?

.................i see a lot of work i like..............i see a lot of work i love.............i took it onto myself a long time ago that you can admire something ,......an object..............a person  or an idea............understand and try to connect...........to hold something ............keep it and want it .................is all good...............i’ve bought pieces of artwork .............because they spoke to me................and the energy they hold has given more than the visual ..............i believe in objects..............i feel they are the given energy from the maker ...............long-lasting ......forever.............i love art because of that............perhaps , i might love to collect works ................but i don’t have enough wall nor floorspace anyway................would i like to wake up to a cup of black coffee with an Eva Hesse original in my face ...........no .....................BUT PERHAPS , A KURT KREN FILM...............AFTER A BUMP AND A GLASS OF RED WINE....................OR A KIENHOLZ IN MY BASEMENT FOR TRICK-OR-TREAT...............BLOW JOBS AND WHAT NOTS................LOTS OF DIRTY CANDY WITH PUBIC HAIR STUCK TO THE CARMEL.............

What’s the first artwork you ever sold?

..................I DON’T KNOW ,ME ..........I HAVEN’T REALLY SOLD ANYTHING ..............WE SHOULD HAVE A YARD SALE................BUT ,LET ME THINK................LIA SOLD SOMETHING OF MINE ,................I THINK IT WAS A BLOW-UP STILL FROM THE ‘GAR HAR  CLOWN’....................THE DR. WHO INVENTED BOTOX...............IT WAS INSTALLED IN HIS WAITING ROOM.................PERFECT ...............I THINK...............

 What’s the weirdest thing you ever saw happen in a museum or gallery?

....................I JUST COULD NOT BELIEVE HOW ALL THESE MUSEUM LADIES COULD HAVE NOT ONLY THE SAME HAIRCUTS BUT THE SAME FACES TOO........THEY ALL LOOK LIKE THEIR FACE WAS MOVED TO THE LEFT..............AND ONE EYE ,....LOOKING THIS WAY AND THE OTHER EYE LOOKING THAT WAY.............LIKE GOOGLE EYES AT THE 99 CENT STORE......................BUT I HAVE TO ADMIT,.............THEY SMELLED NICE.............

What’s your art-world pet peeve?

................PET PEEVE..............I’VE ALWAYS BEEN TREATED WELL AND I LIKE WORKING WITH CURATORS.......IF I COULD PUT MYSELF IN THEIR WORLD,........I MIGHT UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH WORK THEY MUST HAVE TO DEAL WITH AND LOOK AT...............BUT THERE ARE HIDDEN GEMS.................RIGHT UNDER THEIR NOSES..................I WOULD LOOK FOR THE UNDERDOG......TAKE A RISK AND GO BEYOND WHAT IS IN YOUR FACE ...............ARCHIVE AND DISCOVER .............THAT’S WHAT A TRUE CURATOR SHOULD DO ....I THINK .....................FIND THE WORK ............GET SOME DUST ON YOU.......................

What’s your favorite post-gallery watering hole or restaurant?

................AFTER ANY SHOW ,.......IT’S A TRADITION TO GO OUT AFTERWARD..............I HAVE MANY FOND MEMORIES.....................I JUST LIKE BEING WITH MY FRIENDS .......EATING AND DRINKING .........IT’S PRETTY MUCH THE ONLY TIME I EVER SEE MY FRIENDS...................BUT THEN THE RITUAL OF DRINKS AND FOOD FOSTER NEW FRIENDS TOO..............I ALWAYS ENJOY THAT PART ...GOING OUT ..................AFTER AND BE IN THE MOMENT .................AND THE PLACES WE GO ARE ALWAYS VERY SPECIAL TO ME............................I REMEMBER....MOST OF IT...........BUT THE AFTER-PARTIES...........I DON’T RECALL..................

Do you have a museum/gallery going routine?

.............NOPE ................I SPEND MOST OF MY DAY IN THE DARK.................I HAVE CONTACT PAPER ON MY WINDOWS ,..SO NOT TO LET ANY LIGHT IN.....................I’M AT THE POINT WHERE ,...I’M ALMOST HIDING UNDER MY BED ALL DAY ..........WITH JUST MY NOSE STICKING OUT..............SMELLING TO SEE WHAT’S UP................BUT I’M NOT THERE YET...............I GET SOME SUN ,...WHEN I GO OUT FOR THE MAIL.................AND TAKE A PEAK AT THE OCEAN AND THE WAVES.....................I GARDEN IN THE SPRING..................BUT FOR NOW , BECAUSE IT IS WINTER .....................I STOCK UP ON CAN FOOD.................TUNA ........CAN SOUP........CHICKEN NOODLE ...CHI CAR RINA.............ITALIAN WEDDING...........LENTIL ............SPLIT PEA................CLAM CHOWDER .........CORN CHOWDER ........... MINESTRONE ......................BUT ,..........IF I COULD AND WOULD.....................I COULD SIT IN THE EGYPTIAN  ROOM AT THE MFA...IN BOSTON ...............EVERY DAY.....................FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE AND NEVER GET TIRED OF IT..................BUT I’VE GOT CAT LITTER TO CHANGE...........AND IT PUTS LOTION ON ITS BODY.................AND IT PLACES THE LOTION IN THE BASKET..................

What’s the last great book you read?

..............CHARIOTS OF THE GODS ..............BY ERICH VON DANIKEN..................SHOULD HAVE READ IT YEARS AGO.......BUT I DIDN’T................

What work of art do you wish you owned?

...............WELL I SAW THIS DRAWING AT THE ANDY WARHOL MUSEUM IN PITTSBURGH PA..............BACK IN 1995...............WHEN I WAS THERE FOR A SCREENING.............A CRAYON DRAWING .............8 X 10 INCH.................‘OF CRAB LICE ON A CROTCH’ ..............I LOVED IT.............I THINK HE WAS 13 YEARS OLD WHEN HE MADE IT..................

What under-appreciated artist, gallery, or work do you think people should know about?

............MY DEAR FRIEND ...........JEFF McKENNSIE.................HE GOES UNDER MAK....................HE’S A GOOD SCOTT.............WE ARE THE SAME AGE ..............WE WENT TO MASS ART TOGETHER  .................HE IS AN AMAZING ARTIST.............FOR MANY YEARS, HE WAS A THREE-D WALL-WORK PAINTER ...........AND OBJECT MAKER.....................MOST OF HIS WORK NO LONGER EXISTS................BUT I REMEMBER IT ............AND AS I WRITE I CRY.....WITH TEARS DOWN MY FACE..................BECAUSE I WANTED TO SAVE HIS WORK ...........I THOUGHT SOMEDAY ,...THE WORLD WOULD AWAKE AND FIND HIM ............BUT THE WORLD LEFT HIM BEHIND .................VERY SAD ,...OUR LOSS................JEFF NOW MAKES DIGITAL WORKS AND PERFORMANCE IN SOUND .............HE LIVES IN BOSTON .........KAYE ,..............HIS WIFE ..................ANYWAY , ..............FIRST TIME I MET HIM IN ART SCHOOL  AT MASS ART..............HE INFECTED ME ................I UNDERSTOOD HIM AND WE BECAME BROTHERS FOR LIFE...........ANYWAY ,...JEFF ROCKS...............

What international art destination do you most want to visit?

................I WOULD LIKE TO RETURN TO POMPEII , OUTSIDE OF NAPLES ......ITALY...........THERE IS SO MUCH ART THERE AND THE FRAGMENT OF LIFE FUSED FROM THE MOMENT IN TIME ..............MY 4 FATHERS COME FROM THERE AND I HAVE ALWAYS FELT NEAR ...........I WENT THERE IN 1982 ,................I NEVER WANTED TO LEAVE..............BUT I WILL RETURN ............