Subject, Object, Verb is the sonic counterpart to ArtReview magazine, one of the world’s leading publications on contemporary art. The show explores the connections between artist, art and life – or, in the show’s own lexicon: subject, object and verb. Musician, artist and writer Ross Simonini engages with artists and thinkers of all varieties, including but not limited to painters, fashion designers, filmmakers, novelists, sculptors, poets, composers, sound artists, curators, and philosophers. The show features a collage of formats, from interviews to field recordings to mixtapes to sound commissions, while always encouraging an attention to the many ways in which art can arrive at the ears.
S2 Ep7: Sheila Heti on Thinking about Thinking
Dec 15, 2021
Show notes
Sheila Heti is a writer who interrogates the role of the writer, questions the limits of the book and explores the spectrum of literature. She has written novels, fables, a fashion book, a play, and philosophical investigations into everyday life. On this episode, she discusses working with systems as an artist, her love of thinking about thinking, and two of her upcoming works: ‘Alphabetical Diary’ and ‘Pure Colour’. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini
S2 Ep6: Tao Lin on the Art of Unknowing
Oct 21, 2021
Show notes
Tao Lin has a relentlessly curious mind. In his fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, he toes the line between reality and the imagined. His newest novel, Leave Society (2021), uses a great depth of nonfictional research to push against the ideas of accepted science as they related to his life. In an era of proliferating controversial theories, Tao's book celebrates the ability of science to refuse certainty and open up a space of unknowing. On this episode, Lin discusses a variety of ideas, including flat earth, hollow earth and free energy – alternative theories that, for Lin, serve as fertile material for his art. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini Featured image: ‘birds mandala’ (2017) by Tao Lin
S2 Ep5: Simon Critchley on Pandemic Mysticism
Jun 25, 2021
Show notes
Philosopher Simon Critchley writes about the history of human thought with generosity and open-minded curiosity. His newest book, Bald, is a collection of writings from his New York Times column, ‘The Stone’, which covers a vast cultural spectrum, from Socrates to David Bowie to Mormonism. On this episode, he presents his lecture on ‘Pandemic Mysticism’ alongside a few recordings by the monks of Simonpetra monastery. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini Featured image: fresco at Vatopedi monastery, Mt Athos; courtesy Jim Forest (Flickr, Creative Commons)
S2 Ep4: Flying Lotus
May 26, 2021
Show notes
The musician and filmmaker, Flying Lotus has created a body of psychedelic, horrific and musically sophisticated work. On this episode, he discusses his thoughts on film school, spirituality, cannabis, and the piano, alongside a few excerpts from his new album, a soundtrack to the Samurai anime series, Yasuke. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini
S2 Ep3: Pat Metheny
Apr 27, 2021
Show notes
Guitarist and composer Pat Metheny has spent the last five decades investigating music from a vast array of musical approaches. On this episode, he discusses music from a philosophical perspective, alongside a few excerpts from his album of guitar quartet music Road to The Sun. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini
S2 Ep2: Tschabalala Self
Mar 18, 2021
Show notes
Painter Tschabalala Self plays and discusses her new audio work, Cotton Mouth, which uses sound collage and oral history to tell the story of contemporary black pop culture. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini.
S2 Ep1: Lawrence Abu Hamdan
Feb 18, 2021
Show notes
Artist Lawrence Abu Hamdan opens up his personal inventory of recorded sounds, which he has featured in his many investigative sound works. For this episode, Abu Hamdan simultaneously performs these sounds and discusses their slippery nature in his Dubai studio with curator Sabih Ahmed. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini.
S1 Ep4: Ariel Pink, Johanna Hedva, and Jacolby Satterwhite
Dec 16, 2020
Show notes
Musician Ariel Pink opens up his unreleased private archive of voice memos and talks about his love of unproduced bootlegs. Artist Jacolby Satterwhite plays a track from his band, PAT, which samples amateur song recordings made by his mother. Musician and writer Johanna Hedva discusses the many extended vocal techniques and experimental vocalists they studied on the path to writing their new album. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini.
S1 Ep3: Routine, Ritual, Eulogy
Aug 20, 2020
Show notes
Writer Mason Currey discusses the daily rituals of Maya Angelou, Truman Capote, Beethoven, Patricia Highsmith, David Lynch, W.H. Auden and Lillian Hellman. Artist Natalie Labriola speaks about the history of female mystic artists, including Hildegard von Bingen, Betye Saar, Georgiana Houghton, CA Conrad, and Ana Mendieta. Candice Lin offers a surreal eulogy for her feral cat friend. New music by Astral Oracles and Sam Gendel. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini. Astral Oracles music by Michael Thibault. CA Conrad clips from the documentary Rituals for Poetry.
S1 Ep2: Josh Smith, Farah Al Qasimi, and Angharad Williams
May 20, 2020
Show notes
Painter Josh Smith speaks about his reclusive lifestyle and his conflicted relationship with exhibiting his work. Photographer, Farah Al Qasimi discusses her secret life as a soundcloud musician and plays some new music. Writer, Patrick Langley discusses the history of telephone art, and artist, Angharad Williams performs an act of channeling. Host Ross Simonini Credits Produced by ArtReview and Ross Simonini
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