Usually the things that are the farthest out — that look the least like art to me — are the things that become the most important.


 
American painter Glenn Ligon is one of the most recognizable figures in the contemporary art scene. His distinctive, political work uses repetition and transformation to abstract the texts of 20th-century writers.
In this episode, Ligon talks about childhood and what it means to have a parent who fiercely and playfully supports you. He also discusses the essential lesson that there’s value in the things you do differently, and why he won’t take an afternoon nap in his own studio. 
References:
Courtney Bryan
Pamela Z 
Samiya Bashir
Thelma Golden
Robert O’Meally
Romare Beardon
Toni Morrison
Lorna Simpson
Margaret Naumberg
The Walden School
Mike D - Beastie Boys
Murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner
Davóne Tines
Chris Ofili 
Henry Threadgill
Frédéric Bruly Bouabré
“How It Feels to Be Colored Me”
Saidiya Hartman
Fred Moten
Jason Moran

Painter Glenn Ligon on the value of difference

Artist, performer, and host Helga Davis brings a soulful curiosity and love of people to the podcast Helga, where she talks about the intimate lives of creative people as they share the steps they’ve taken along their path. She draws listeners into these discussions with cultural change-makers, whether already famous or rising talents, whose sensibilities expand our imaginations as we explore what we think we know about each other. The new season of Helga is a co-production of WNYC Studios and the Brown Arts Institute at Brown University. WNYC Studios is a listener-supported producer of other leading podcasts including Radiolab, On the Media, and Death, Sex & Money. The Brown Arts Institute at Brown University is a new university-wide research enterprise and catalyst for the arts at Brown that creates new work and supports, amplifies, and adds new dimensions to the creative practices of Brown’s arts departments, faculty, students, and community.

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Painter Glenn Ligon on the value of difference

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