Do you think it’s good for art to have a political side to it?
It’s never been anything that I’ve done in a direct manner. I tend to look inward and derive art from there rather than taking all these things that are going on in the world and basing my work off of that. As a painter, you make things based off of your intuition. The way in which these works relate to the misanthrope is that they’re at once meticulously laid out while still being isolated figures that are interwoven into each piece. Even when there are multiple figures within the same work, they’re still separated from one another.
You began work on the exhibition in August 2016. Would you say that it changed and took form as a result of external events?
Absolutely. The outside world always affects what you make. It’s more pronounced in this instance; the work doesn’t have politics as its focal reference point but it is informed by it.
Is causality a big part of your work?
The act of making something is, to me, causality in itself. You can have a preliminary agenda or purpose to your work, but simply taking the action to bring something new into the world and pursue a life where that’s what you’re doing is causality. I’m always amazed by seeing new art—be it in a museum, a gallery or a flea market—thinking about how somebody made that given work. It’s a unique thing, taking the time to make things that have no tangible purpose. That’s where the causality has its roots.
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The exhibition Misanthrope by Richard Colman is on display until May 13th.
V1 Gallery
Flæsketorvet 69-71
1170 Copenhagen K
Denmark