1
D
REBEKAH GOLDSTEIN :
PIO THOMPSON INTERVIEW AT THE ANDERSON COLLECTION (REMOVE THIS WHITE PART)
:REBEKAH GOLDSTEIN : What are the differences between approaching an object that is a “true” sculpture or
MELISSA CHEN
GOLDSTEIN painting, as opposed to a piece like Murray’s Chain Gang, which seems to disrupt such
medium specificity, as a combination of both?
: [Reflecting on her own experience] Working between two mediums has given me an
appreciation for what both can do. I love that painting doesn’t have to abide by the
laws of gravity, but creating sculptures has made me more sensitive to basics, like
shadow and space. So now, looking at Murray’s work, a combination of both, I think
about how she is dealing with gravity, perspective, and space.
I love this edge of hers, to the lower left, and how she’s left it unpainted, letting
the work be a painting instead of a fully-painted object. You can see the wooden back,
making it almost a theatre set or a prop piece.
…
: You seem to make use of the hand drawn line to give the work structure. What makes
a structure work?
: A sense of precariousness. I think that comes from the hand drawn line. For my own
work, it tends to be a weird sense of balance where it seems like the structure is about
to fall apart or about to come together. And that’s what Diebenkorn is doing in Ocean
Park #60, his lines give the painting a sense of architecture. What would this painting
be without those lines? Nothingness?
Look how he managed to leave gesso showing on the side and at the top. He uses
his awareness of how the image is dealing with the edges and his instinct to keep
(REMOVE THIS WHITE PART) : For me, what works is when there is the right amount of wrong, something that jars it
slightly. For example, look how tonally related Ocean Park is, and how the lines at the
:top move the eye up. I love how the blues and the greens get muted but not muddy,
the canvas from getting too built up. That white is what’s giving this painting room to
breathe. When you stand back, even though the colored sections are the biggest part
of the painting, that strip of canvas is what comes forward. If the painting didn’t have
that, it would fall flat.
…
ARIEL KAUFMAN : When you say something works or doesn’t, what does that mean?
GOLDSTEIN
and when you squint there is a sense of light.
MITZI HARRIS
GOLDSTEIN …
: When you start a painting, do you make a conscious decision that it will be abstract?
: I always approach my paintings thinking they will be figurative, and I’m always sur-
prised when they end up more abstract than I intended. I start by putting down wash-
es of color, and as I’m working some image takes hold. Eventually, though, I have to let
go of the initial imagery to let the piece take on its own life form.
I try to push myself not to be attached to the parts that I like. There's always a ‘best
part’ of a painting, and that's the part that has to go. It ruins everything else because I
end up painting around it, making the work look precious and tentative. It’s only when
I paint out the best thing that the painting gets some guts. I always like to have a sense
of ruthlessness when I paint; like playing a game of chicken with myself, daring myself
to do what’s really uncomfortable.
:
2
D
REBEKAH GOLDSTEIN :
20
PIO THOMPSON REBEKA GOLDSTEIN (REMOVE THIS WHITE PART)
:REBEKAH GOLDSTEIN INTERVIEW AT THE ANDERSON COLLECTION
MELISSA CHEN
GOLDSTEIN : What are the differences between approaching an object that is a “true” sculpture or
painting, as opposed to a piece like Murray’s Chain Gang, which seems to disrupt such
medium specificity, as a combination of both?
: [Reflecting on her own experience] Working between two mediums has given me an
appreciation for what both can do. I love that painting doesn’t have to abide by the
laws of gravity, but creating sculptures has made me more sensitive to basics, like
shadow and space. So now, looking at Murray’s work, a combination of both, I think
about how she is dealing with gravity, perspective, and space.
I love this edge of hers, to the lower left, and how she’s left it unpainted, letting
the work be a painting instead of a fully-painted object. You can see the wooden back,
making it almost a theatre set or a prop piece.
…
: You seem to make use of the hand drawn line to give the work structure. What makes
a structure work?
: A sense of precariousness. I think that comes from the hand drawn line. For my own
work, it tends to be a weird sense of balance where it seems like the structure is about
to fall apart or about to come together. And that’s what Diebenkorn is doing in Ocean
Park #60, his lines give the painting a sense of architecture. What would this painting
be without those lines? Nothingness?
Look how he managed to leave gesso showing on the side and at the top. He uses
his awareness of how the image is dealing with the edges and his instinct to keep
20
(REMOVE THIS WHITE PART) ARIEL KAUFMAN the canvas from getting too built up. That white is what’s giving this painting room
GOLDSTEIN to breathe. When you stand back, even though the colored sections are the biggest
part of the painting, that strip of canvas is what comes forward. If the painting didn’t
MITZI HARRIS have that, it would fall flat.
GOLDSTEIN
…
20
: When you say something works or doesn’t, what does that mean?
: For me, what works is when there is the right amount of wrong, something that jars it
slightly. For example, look how tonally related Ocean Park is, and how the lines at the
:top move the eye up. I love how the blues and the greens get muted but not muddy,
and when you squint there is a sense of light.
…
: When you start a painting, do you make a conscious decision that it will be abstract?
: I always approach my paintings thinking they will be figurative, and I’m always sur-
prised when they end up more abstract than I intended. I start by putting down wash-
es of color, and as I’m working some image takes hold. Eventually, though, I have to let
go of the initial imagery to let the piece take on its own life form.
I try to push myself not to be attached to the parts that I like. There's always a
‘best part’ of a painting, and that's the part that has to go. It ruins everything else
because I end up painting around it, making the work look precious and tentative. It’s
only when I paint out the best thing that the painting gets some guts. I always like to
have a sense of ruthlessness when I paint; like playing a game of chicken with myself,
daring myself to do what’s really uncomfortable.
:
20
3
D
Rebekah Goldstein :
20
PIO THOMPSON INTERVIEW AT THE ANDERSON COLLECTION (REMOVE THIS WHITE PART)
:Rebekah Goldstein : What are the differences between approaching an object that is a “true” sculpture or
MELISSA CHEN
Goldstein painting, as opposed to a piece like Murray’s Chain Gang, which seems to disrupt such
medium specificity, as a combination of both?
: [Reflecting on her own experience] Working between two mediums has given me an
appreciation for what both can do. I love that painting doesn’t have to abide by the
laws of gravity, but creating sculptures has made me more sensitive to basics, like
shadow and space. So now, looking at Murray’s work, a combination of both, I think
about how she is dealing with gravity, perspective, and space.
I love this edge of hers, to the lower left, and how she’s left it unpainted, letting
the work be a painting instead of a fully-painted object. You can see the wooden back,
making it almost a theatre set or a prop piece.
…
: You seem to make use of the hand drawn line to give the work structure. What makes
a structure work?
: A sense of precariousness. I think that comes from the hand drawn line. For my own
work, it tends to be a weird sense of balance where it seems like the structure is about
to fall apart or about to come together. And that’s what Diebenkorn is doing in Ocean
Park #60, his lines give the painting a sense of architecture. What would this painting
be without those lines? Nothingness?
Look how he managed to leave gesso showing on the side and at the top. He uses
his awareness of how the image is dealing with the edges and his instinct to keep
the canvas from getting too built up. That white is what’s giving this painting room to
20
: For me, what works is when there is the right amount of wrong, something that jars it
slightly. For example, look how tonally related Ocean Park is, and how the lines at the
top move the eye up. I love how the blues and the greens get muted but not muddy,
:and when you squint there is a sense of light.
breathe. When you stand back, even though the colored sections are the biggest part
of the painting, that strip of canvas is what comes forward. If the painting didn’t have
(REMOVE THIS WHITE PART) that, it would fall flat.
…
ARIEL KAUFMAN : When you say something works or doesn’t, what does that mean?
Goldstein
MITZI HARRIS …
Goldstein
: When you start a painting, do you make a conscious decision that it will be abstract?
20
: I always approach my paintings thinking they will be figurative, and I’m always sur-
prised when they end up more abstract than I intended. I start by putting down wash-
es of color, and as I’m working some image takes hold. Eventually, though, I have to let
go of the initial imagery to let the piece take on its own life form.
I try to push myself not to be attached to the parts that I like. There's always a ‘best
part’ of a painting, and that's the part that has to go. It ruins everything else because I
end up painting around it, making the work look precious and tentative. It’s only when
I paint out the best thing that the painting gets some guts. I always like to have a sense
of ruthlessness when I paint; like playing a game of chicken with myself, daring myself
to do what’s really uncomfortable.
:
20