Hari Kunzru

On August 31st I interviewed the artist Ryan Trecartin in New York city. Katie Kitamura participated virtually in this interview. Hence the composite K/K identity. Trecartin's video work is some of the most important and exciting art being made in the US today. Below is a 1500 word edit of a very long conversation, made in collaboration with the artist.

 The Sony building stands at the corner of Madison Avenue and 56th Street in midtown Manhattan. At 197 meters, it’s a little higher than its immediate neighbours, but there are at least sixty taller buildings in the city. It is an inoffensive creamy color. At ground level there’s a spectacular atrium.

 As I write, the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has been in detention for 51 days and 6 hours. I know this so precisely because someone who goes by the handle loveaiww has placed a counter on the web. On the door of my apartment is a poster with a silhouette of Ai, made from a photograph taken during a period when he was interested in getting (and giving) weird haircuts.

 Few film directors seem as directly present in their work as Werner Herzog. Not only does he have an instantly-recognizable aesthetic, but unlike most European auteurs of his generation, he has become a familiar face in front of the camera.

 I wrote about #foursquare, religious ecstasy, court masque, crying, money and the cult of Marina Abramovic for Mute magazine.