A brush with... Helen Marten

A brush with... Helen Marten

Author: The Art Newspaper November 30, 2022 Duration: 1:05:20

Ben Luke talks to the British artist Helen Marten about her influences—including those from the worlds of literature, music, and, of course, art—and the cultural experiences that have shaped her life and work. Marten works in sculpture, text and screen-printed paintings and has created a complex language of forms with a remarkable breadth of materials. Her works entice us to make associations and draw meanings, while remaining richly ambiguous. She discusses her early interest in Joan Miró and Robert Rauschenberg, her enduring passion for the art of Martin Kippenberger and Charline von Heyl, and her absorption in the writing of Roland Barthes as well as Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari. Plus, she reflects on life in the studio and answers our usual questions, including the ultimate one: what is art for?


Helen is co-curator and exhibition designer for Hervé Télémaque: A Hopscotch of the Mind, Aspen Art Museum, Colorado, US, until 26 March 2023.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


Ever wondered what really makes an artist tick? A brush with... from The Art Newspaper goes beyond the finished work to explore the daily rhythms and deep inspirations that fuel the creative process. Each episode is a quiet, focused conversation between host Ben Luke and a leading international artist, structured around a set of deceptively simple questions. You’ll hear them discuss the historical and contemporary figures they look to, the museums they find themselves drawn back to repeatedly, and the books, music, and films that shape their thinking. Crucially, Luke invites them to describe the mundane magic of the studio-what actually happens there day to day. This approach reveals the person behind the practice in a way that feels intimate and genuine. Sponsored by Bloomberg Connects, the podcast builds a rich portrait of artistic life, one thoughtful dialogue at a time. It’s for anyone curious about the web of influences and habits that culminate in a piece of art, offering a rare glimpse into the minds that shape our visual culture. Tune in for conversations that are less about interrogation and more about discovery, where the answers often surprise even the artists themselves.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 135

A brush with...
Podcast Episodes
A brush with… Christopher Wool [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:12
Christopher Wool talks to Ben Luke about his influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped their lives and work. Wool, who was born in Chica…
A brush with... Suzanne Jackson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:05:39
Suzanne Jackson talks to Ben Luke about her influences—from writers to musicians and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped her life and work. Jackson, who was born in 1944 in St. Louis,…
A brush with… Wolfgang Tillmans [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:28
Wolfgang Tillmans talks to Ben Luke about his influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped his life and work. Tillmans, born in Remscheid,…
A brush with… Jeffrey Gibson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:19
Jeffrey Gibson talks to Ben Luke, welcome to A brush with… about his influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped his life and work.Gibson—…
A brush with… Teresita Fernández [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:05:08
Teresita Fernández talks to Ben Luke about her influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped her life and work. Fernández, born in 1968 in M…
A brush with… Jane and Louise Wilson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:00
Jane and Louise Wilson talk to Ben Luke about their influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped their lives and work. Jane and Louise Wils…
A brush with... Tai Shani [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:23:57
Tai Shani talks to Ben Luke about her influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped her life and work.Shani makes sculpture and installation…
A brush with... Hew Locke [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:06
Hew Locke talks to Ben Luke about his influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped his life and work. Locke was born in 1959 in Edinburgh,…
A brush with... Rudolf Stingel [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:33
Rudolf Stingel talks to Ben Luke about his influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped his life and work. Stingel was born in 1956 in Mera…
A brush with… Lubaina Himid [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:09
Lubaina Himid talks to Ben Luke about her influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped her life and work. Himid was born 1954 in Zanzibar a…