Painting: a subject that never fails to excite passion, and, despite rumors of its demise, continues to prove itself as vital as ever. On May 3, 2010, at the invitation of The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, two of contemporary visual arts’ most distinguished figures—Thomas Nozkowski and Robert Storr—came together for a compelling conversation addressing the practice of painting, the making of painting exhibitions, and the relationship between the two.
Nozkowski is one of our most critically acclaimed abstract painters and Storr has been the curator of major painting exhibitions for artists including Gerhard Richter and Chuck Close. Excerpts from their lively exchange can be found below.
“A great curator, I think, makes a new kind of history.”
—Thomas Nozkowski
“The interpretation is not so much exegesis of the work as making the work visible.”
—Robert Storr
“I’m not a big fan of the idea that an artist project should extend into the exhibition.”
—Thomas Nozkowski
“I make models. I make and remake parts of those models.”
—Robert Storr
“Have [the] works been cast free from the tyranny of their own size?”
—Thomas Nozkowski
“If you don’t know what you want to do as a curator, just go looking.”
—Robert Storr
