A brush with... Megan Rooney

A brush with... Megan Rooney

Author: The Art Newspaper June 22, 2022 Duration: 1:01:24

Ben Luke talks to Megan Rooney about her influences—including other artists, writers and musicians—and the cultural experiences that have shaped her life and work. Rooney was born in 1985 in South Africa, but grew up in Brazil and then in Canada, before studying in London. She works in performance, sculpture and painting and has gained particular attention recently for the vast murals she has made in several international museums. Among much else, she discusses the transformative experience of seeing Henry Moore at the National Gallery of Ontario; a life-changing moment seeing works made on the walls by women prisoners in the Carceri dell’Inquisizione, Palermo, Sicily; and about the writing of Maxine Kumin and Haruki Murakami. Plus, Rooney answers our regular questions, including those about the pictures on her studio wall, her daily working rituals and the artwork she would choose to live with, as well as the ultimate one: what is art for?


Megan Rooney’s With Sun is in Fugues in Colour, Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, until 29 August. She is also in the group exhibition Saturation, Thaddaeus Ropac, Pantin, Paris, until 24 September. She will have a solo exhibition at Thaddaeus Ropac, Paris, in early 2023.


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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... Chantal Joffe [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:49
Ben Luke talks to Chantal Joffe about the cultural experiences that have had an impact on her life and work. They discuss the shift in her work from early paintings based on pornography to recent depictions of herself an…
A brush with... Jenny Saville [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:00
Ben Luke talks to Jenny Saville about her cultural experiences and their effect on her work and life. We learn about how her uncle inspired her to explore the Old Masters and match their ambition, how having children hug…
A brush with... Michael Armitage [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:32
In the inaugural episode of The Art Newspaper's podcast series of conversations with artists, host Ben Luke talks to Michael Armitage about his life and work through his cultural experiences: the artists, living and long…
Trailer: A brush with... [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:30
Introducing A brush with... a podcast by The Art Newspaper. In each episode, the host Ben Luke has a conversation with a leading artist, exploring their life and work through their cultural experiences, asking the questi…