“There are two means of refuge from the misery of life — music and cats.”

-Albert Schweitzer

Many of us share our time on this planet with animals. These companions offer comfort, company, a refuge from the travails of the wider world. And yet our relationship with animals is complex. We humans tend to believe our status sits high above the rest of earth’s living beings. And so we take without giving, soothing our consciences that this is how it has been ordained, that the planet’s treasures have been set down merely for our use. But what if we stepped back, re-examined our relationship with those things that fall outside the human realm, which indeed is much of the planet whether we care to admit it or not. Would we, perhaps, discover that our position is not nearly as privileged as we have been led to believe?

Kathryn Spence sat down with us to discuss, among other things, her fall 2022 show, Kathryn Spence at P. Bibeau. The space itself suited the work in the exhibition, small objects that relate to each other that Spence had been working on for the last two years. This theme of the objects she creates relating to each other is a common one in her work, and Spence explains that the relationship between is as important as the objects themselves, which, in turn, makes the space an important part of the overall installation. To hear more about this, including how native plants influence her work, listen to the complete interview.

Paul Pfeiffer just closed a show, Red Green Blue, at Paula Cooper Gallery. In 2019, Pfeiffer facilitated a live performance of the Red Coat Marching band, who perform during football season in Georgia. He had been filming them for years previously when the opportunity arose to bring them to NYC to perform live in Amazing Grace/RGB at the Apollo Theater. This recent exhibition saw the band return for the opening and features single-channel video of close-up footage of band members and directors as they play live during football games. To hear more about this and Pfeiffer’s other work, listen to the complete interview.

Read the summary of this week's interviews and resources.