The Installation Art Podcast

Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast

Michael Johansson is a Swedish installation artist based in Malmö, known for precisely assembled sculptures and installations made from ready-made objects that he describes as ‘real life Tetris’. His work has been shown across Europe, Asia and beyond, and ranges from ephemeral site-specific installations to large-scale permanent public commissions cast in bronze.

What we cover:

• The art school realisation: being technically skilled at drawing is not the same as knowing what kind of art you want to make

• Sourcing from flea markets and secondhand stores

• Institutional installations made entirely from objects borrowed from a museum's own back rooms and storage

• Residencies for installation artists and the newer model he thinks would work much better

• The Taiwan passport disaster: two days to install a large site-specific work and why it turned out almost too good to be true

• Time as the greatest challenge: procrastinating until the last possible moment and forgetting to eat

• Moving a whole city: why an entire Swedish town is being relocated and how his new project is linked

09:00 Growing Up and Early Making

10:42 Finding Artistic Direction

13:15 Into Installations and Public Art

15:37 First Breakthrough Opportunities

18:08 Ready-Made Process Rules

20:42 Sourcing and Colour Logic

36:32 Fabricators and Collaborations

40:00 Residencies Reality Check

43:59 Taipei Install Panic

46:52 Afterlife of Installations

53:37 Work Life Balance Reset

01:00:02 Hard Truths and Highlights

01:07:16 Advice and Dream Projects

Michael Johansson is based in Malmö, Sweden. You can find out more about his work on his website: https://www.michaeljohansson.com/ and follow him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michaeljohansson/

Michael works with several international galleries:

Aeroplastics in Belgium: https://www.aeroplastics.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/aeroplastics_gallery/

Helsinki Contemporary in Finland: https://helsinkicontemporary.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/helsinkicontemporary/

GSA Gallery in Sweden: https://gsa.se/ | https://www.instagram.com/gsagallerystockholm/ | @gsagallery1690

Galleri Arnstedt Östra Karup in Sweden: https://www.galleriarnstedt.se/ | https://www.instagram.com/galleriarnstedt/

Galerie Ramakers in the Netherlands: https://www.galerieramakers.nl/ | https://www.instagram.com/galerieramakers2

Galeria Enrique Guerrero in Mexico: https://www.galeriaenriqueguerrero.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/galeriaenriqueguerrero/

Massimo Carasi – The Flat: https://www.carasi.it/ | https://www.instagram.com/theflat_massimocarasi

Galerie Hartwich in Germany: https://www.galerie-hartwich.de/ | https://www.instagram.com/galeriehartwich

44309//Gallery in Germany: https://44309gallery.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/44309gallery/

Galleri Christoffer Egelund in Denmark: https://christofferegelund.dk/ | https://www.instagram.com/gallerichristofferegelund/

Also mentioned in this episode:

Club Mate: https://www.club-mate.de/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/clubmate_original/

Lego: https://www.lego.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/lego | @LEGO

Airfix: https://uk.airfix.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/officialairfix/ | @OfficialAirfix

Preview Berlin: https://www.previewberlin.de/

Skog Art Space: https://skogart.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/skogartspace/

Helsinki Contemporary: https://www.helsinkicontemporary.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/helsinkicontemporary/

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large-scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast

📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/

Samuelle Green grew up in rural Pennsylvania in a family of makers and studied art at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia and Parsons in New York. After nearly 20 years in NYC working across galleries, museums, fabrication and film sets, she made a pivotal decision: leave the city to have the space to finally build the work she had always wanted to make.

That work is large scale immersive installations built from rolled cones of reclaimed books and found paper. Exhibited across the US as well as in China, Italy, France and Estonia. Green’s work has also appeared on HBO and AMC+ and won the Arte Laguna Prize in Venice.

What we cover:

• The decision to leave New York City after nearly 20 years to reclaim her studio practice

• What it takes to create immersive installations out of paper and what happens when huge panels of work go missing two weeks before a show

• The accidental acoustic discovery: paper installations as anechoic chambers, concert venues and restaurant sound dampeners

• Creating art for TV and film sets and what artists should know before saying yes

• Reflective outdoor sculptures activated only by car headlights and flash photography and pivoting your medium after finding success

Samuelle Green is based in rural Pennsylvania and represented by Ivy Brown Gallery in New York and Bonham Gallery in Arrowtown, New Zealand. Her work is also available through Holly Hunt Design showrooms across the US.

You can see her reflective installation in person near Cochecton Fire Station at 54 County Road 114 in Cochecton, New York.

Find out more about her work on her website: https://samuellegreen.com and follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samuellegreen

03:44 Growing Up Creative

05:58 Leaving New York

08:10 First Big Break

09:49 Crowdfunding the Installation

15:33 Paper Durability and Storage

16:54 Install Timeline and Logistics

20:42 Safety and Public Interaction

22:51 Overseas Exhibitions

31:21 Grant Funded Pivot To Public Art

34:34 TV Film Set Work

42:53 Studio Practice And Sketches

55:45 Sound And Silence

Also mentioned in this episode:

Tyler School of Art: https://tyler.temple.edu/ | https://www.instagram.com/tyler_artandarchitecture/

Pearl Paint: https://www.pearlpaintco.com/

Parsons School of Design: https://www.newschool.edu/parsons/ | https://www.instagram.com/TheNewSchool/ | @thenewschool

Hatch Fund: https://thehatchfund.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/hatchfund/

Rosco flame retardant: https://au.rosco.com/en/products/roscoflamex | https://www.instagram.com/rosco_labs/ | @rosco_labs

TAKKK Symposium: https://www.takkksymposions.ee/en/sümpoosion | https://www.instagram.com/takkkkunstikeskus/

Holly Hunt Design: https://www.hollyhunt.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/hollyhuntdesign/ | @hollyhuntdesign

Art on Paper New York: https://ny.thepaperfair.com/

Morris Museum: https://morrismuseum.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/morrismuseum/ | @morrismuseum131

Taizé: https://www.taize.fr/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/taize | @taize

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast

📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/

I made a 3-minute listener survey to help shape the podcast's future. Your feedback genuinely matters.

Fill out here: https://forms.gle/qqHJrMXpsC9UYu2m7

Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast

Katriina Campitelli is a Toronto-based public art curator with Finnish and Italian roots who has spent over five years commissioning permanent and temporary public art across Canada. She started during the pandemic by creating a projection mapping festival when galleries shut down, and hasn't stopped since. This is a conversation from the other side of the public art table: what do public art curators actually do, what they are looking for and what many artists get wrong.

Katriina's work spans permanent commissions to ephemeral festivals, sculpture gardens and community engagement programs.

This episode is essential listening for any artist thinking about making the jump into public art. But it's equally fascinating for anyone who's ever walked past a sculpture and wondered how it got there.

What we cover:

• The percent-for-art funding model and why most permanent public art is tied to infrastructure budgets

• What a public art curator actually does start to finish

• Why the only way to learn public art is to make public art and why that's a genuine problem given that public art cannot fail

• The Drunk Frat Boy test: what your work needs before it can be installed in a public space

• The giant chrome cow that led to two years of community backlash

• Why Maurizio Cattelan's middle finger outside the Milan stock exchange became a permanent installation

• What selection panelists notice (and remember) about artists and why being kind is a strategic career choice

• Why public art matters beyond aesthetics: as a tool for economic development, wayfinding, community belonging and joy

05:40 Growing Up Between Cultures

07:20 Master's in Italy

10:23 What a Public Art Curator Does

17:19 Finding Artists

19:16 How to Start in Public Art

30:00 Community Buy-In and Cautionary Tales

37:14 Temporary vs Permanent Public Art

38:24 Design Longevity Rules

47:30 Community Engagement Wins

57:36 Advice for Applicants

01:03:46 Career Highlights

Katriina Campitelli is based in Toronto, Canada.

Find out more about Katriina’s work on her website https://katcampitelli.ca/ and follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katcampitelli/

Also mentioned in this episode:

JR: https://www.jr-art.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/jr/

Percent For Public Art: https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/planning-development/official-plan-guidelines/design-guidelines/percent-for-public-art-inventory/

Ron Baird: https://ronbairdartist.com/

National Film Board of Canada: https://www.nfb.ca/ | https://www.instagram.com/onf_nfb/ | @nfb

Maurizio Cattelan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurizio_Cattelan | https://www.instagram.com/mauriziocattelan/

Francesco Perilli: https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francesco_Perilli_(artista)

Joel Sears: https://joelsears.com/about-joel/

Alex Seton episode: https://installationartpodcast.com/alex-seton-024

The High Line: https://www.thehighline.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/highlinenyc

Fourth Plinth: https://www.london.gov.uk/programmes-strategies/arts-and-culture/current-culture-projects/fourth-plinth-trafalgar-square

Anish Kapoor: https://anishkapoor.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/dirty_corner

Claes Oldenburg: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claes_Oldenburg

Myfanwy MacLeod: https://www.myfanwymacleod.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/mittens_macleod_again/

Pasi Rauhala: https://pasirauhala.fi/ | https://www.instagram.com/pasirauhala/

Korkeasaari Zoo: https://korkeasaari.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/korkeasaari/ | @Korkeasaareneläintarha

Amos Rex Museum: https://amosrex.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/amoskonst/

Toronto Sculpture Garden: https://www.toronto.ca/explore-enjoy/history-art-culture/public-art/public-art-monuments-collection/comp-sculpture-garden/

National Gallery of Canada: https://www.gallery.ca/ | https://www.instagram.com/NatGalleryCan/ | @ngcmedia

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast

📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/

I made a 3-minute listener survey to help shape the podcast's future. Your feedback genuinely matters.

Fill out here: https://forms.gle/qqHJrMXpsC9UYu2m7

Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast

Aaron T Stephan is a sculptor and public artist who is so interested in process and materials, he builds and installs nearly every project himself. His permanent installations can be found all over the USA and he has also created numberous gallery installations and performative events. His work has been acquired by institutions like Portland Museum of Art, John Michael Kohler Arts Center and Farnsworth Art Museum.

This conversation is candid, funny and full of hard-won insight. Aaron grew up on a self-sustaining hippie farm in rural Maine where self reliance, making and fixing things was expected. That relationship with objects, materials and technique has never left him and sits at the core of everything he makes.

What we cover:

• Proposing projects you have no idea how to execute and teaching yourself new fabrication techniques on the fly

• Performative works where he builds structures around audiences mid-dinner or installs work as a live performance on-site

• Navigating job sites where artists have essentially no power and the only leverage you have is that they want you to leave

• What it actually takes to work at public scale and establishing a practice that lets you fail before you're locked in

• Why the projects that nearly break you are always the best ones

• Advice to artists who are intrigued by public art

Aaron T Stephan lives and works in Portland, Maine. You can see his permanent installations across the US, for example Woven Lines at City of Altoona, IA, Paths Rising at Tampa International Airport, Point of View at Salt Palace Convention Center, Salt Lake City and more.

More information on his website: https://aarontstephan.com and his Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aarontstephan/

Watch Aaron’s TED talk performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=697QUP6iYw8

05:23 Childhood And Making

08:14 Art School And Wandering

09:46 How He Got Into Big Installations

11:12 Guardrail Knot Story

13:35 Torture And Magic

18:01 Building It Yourself

19:45 Funding Realities

24:48 Building Site Chaos

29:30 Hiring An Actor To Play Him At Openings

33:57 Public Art Hard Truths

38:59 Concrete Block Vortex Idea

47:13 Advice To Artists

Also mentioned in this episode:

Tampa International Airport: https://www.tampaairport.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/flyTPA | @FlyTPA

San Diego International Airport: https://www.san.org | https://www.instagram.com/sandiegoairport/

Texas Tech University: https://www.ttu.edu | https://www.instagram.com/texastech/

La Croix: https://www.lacroixwater.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/lacroixwater/

The Art Angle: https://news.artnet.com/multimedia/the-art-angle | https://www.instagram.com/artnet | @artnet

Purchase College: https://www.purchase.edu/ | https://www.instagram.com/purchasecollege/ | @PurchaseCollege

SUNY New Paltz: https://www.newpaltz.edu/ | https://www.instagram.com/sunynewpaltz | @sunynewpaltz

TEDxDirigo: https://www.tedxdirigo.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/tedxdirigo/

https://www.ted.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/ted | @TED

Maurizio Cattelan: https://www.perrotin.com/en/artists/maurizio-cattelan | https://www.instagram.com/mauriziocattelan/

Sears, Roebuck & Co: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sears

Matthew Mazzotta: https://www.matthewmazzotta.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/matthewmazzotta/

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast

📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/

I made a 3-minute listener survey to help shape the podcast's future. Your feedback genuinely matters.

Fill out here: https://forms.gle/qqHJrMXpsC9UYu2m7

Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast

Buy me a coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/installationartpodcast

Donna Dennis is one of the contemporary art pioneers who pushed sculpture toward the domain of architecture in the early 1970s. Her complex sculptural installations draw from overlooked fragments of American vernacular architecture.

This conversation dives into five decades of art-making in New York's evolving art world. We discuss how she taught herself carpentry, pipe bending and electrical work to build pieces based on her body's scale. How Virginia Woolf's "Shakespeare's sister" gave her the drive to make work even if no one ever saw it. How feminism shaped her False Front Hotels as self-portraits when she decided "women's lives were worthy of study." And why she refuses to use the word "practice" to describe her work.

Donna's work is held in collections including Brooklyn Museum, the Walker Art Center, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Key moments from this episode:

• From failing at abstract painting in Paris to her first steps toward installation

• SoHo in the 1970s: how big raw loft spaces made it possible for artists to think big

The Holly Solomon Gallery story: from studio visit ("we're buying a country house") to "I'm starting a gallery and I want you to be in it"—then Whitney Biennial within two years

Venice Biennale 1982: realizing in April the show is in June, not 1984—quit your job, six assistants, work doubling in size

• A car roll into the river in slow motion, with Donna’s belongings inside – and how that inspired a public artwork that also suffered a tragic end

• ”A woman made this!?" The comment that captures why size mattered

Donna Dennis is based in Germantown, New York. You can learn more about her work and subscribe to her newsletter on her website: https://www.donnadennisart.com

And follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/donnadennisstudio

03:00 Hudson Valley Roots

04:07 Rapid Fire Warmup

05:06 Virginia Woolf Feminist Purpose

07:28 Night Studio Rituals

09:40 Early Art Calling

12:36 From Painting to Installations

47:28 Storage Risks

49:58 Hidden Vistas

51:19 Meaning And Mystery

54:34 Audience Boundaries

57:09 Vandalism Tale

01:04:01 Funding Choices and Final Reflections

Books mentioned:

Writing Toward Dawn: Journals 1969-1982: https://www.donnadennisart.com/publications/writing-toward-dawn

Donna Dennis: A Poet in Three Dimensions: https://www.donnadennisart.com/publications/donna-dennis-poet-in-three-dimensions

Also mentioned in this episode:

Petah Coyne: https://www.petahcoyne.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/petahcoyne/

Episode with Petah Coyne: https://installationartpodcast.com/petah-coyne-032

Robert Fulton: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Fulton

Virginia Woolf: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Room_of_One's_Own

Gustave Doré: https://www.wikiart.org/en/gustave-dore

Ben Shahn “The Shape of Content”: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/284780.The_Shape_of_Content

Art Students League: https://www.artstudentsleague.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/aslnyc/ | @ArtStudentsLeagueNY

Martha Diamond: https://marthadiamondtrust.org/ |

Carleton College: https://www.carleton.edu/ | https://www.instagram.com/carletoncollege | @CarletonCollege

Claes Oldenburg: https://www.wikiart.org/en/claes-oldenburg

Jane Bowles “Two Serious Ladies”: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/215262.Two_Serious_Ladies

Deafman Glance by Robert Wilson: https://robertwilson.com/deafman-glance

History of Art by Horst Waldemar Janson: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/2693801-history-of-art

Peter Schjeldahl: https://www.newyorker.com/contributors/peter-schjeldahl

The New Yorker: https://www.newyorker.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/newyorkermag/ | @newyorker

The Poetry Project: https://www.poetryproject.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/poetry_project | @ThePoetryProject

Holly Solomon: https://bonhams.shorthandstories.com/the-collection-of-holly-solomon/

Andy Warhol: https://www.wikiart.org/en/andy-warhol

Denise Green: https://www.denisegreen.net/ |

Judy Pfaff: https://www.judypfaffstudio.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/judy.pfaff/

Whitney Biennial: https://whitney.org/exhibitions/the-biennial | https://www.instagram.com/whitneymuseum/ | @whitney_museum

Venice Biennale: https://www.labiennale.org/en | https://www.instagram.com/labiennale/ | @BiennaleChannel

O’Flaherty’s: https://www.donnadennisart.com/exhibitions/houses-and-hotels | https://www.instagram.com/oflahertys.nyc/

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast

📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/

I made a 3-minute listener survey to help shape the podcast's future. Your feedback genuinely matters.

Fill out here: https://forms.gle/qqHJrMXpsC9UYu2m7

Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast

A candid review of the 25th Biennale of Sydney, spanning five venues across Greater Sydney: from a regional gallery that got everything right to an old Power Station full of missed opportunities.

I spent 10 hours at the media preview visiting all five venues: Lewers Penrith Regional Gallery, Chau Chak Wing Museum, Campbelltown Arts Centre, Art Gallery of New South Wales and White Bay Power Station. This isn't a comprehensive report, it’s my personal takeaway on what works (and what fails) when it comes to installation art at an international exhibition.

The 25th Biennale of Sydney, titled Rememory and curated by Hoor Al-Qasimi, demonstrates something that's come up again and again on this podcast: you can have prestigious artists, important topics and historic venues, but if the lighting is wrong, if there's nowhere to sit, if the space outshines the art… it doesn't work.

What I cover:

• Why Lewers: Penrith Regional Gallery was the standout venue

• Some highlighted works from each venue

• The 11-minute sound installation no one experiences beyond 15 seconds – and other accessibility challenges

• Documentation vs art – where is the line?

• A moment of comparison: do island Biennales create better experiences?

00:32 Biennale of Sydney Facts

02:57 Penrith Gallery Highlight

05:32 Everyone’s Favorite Installation

08:06 Chau Chak Wing Museum

10:31 Campbelltown Art Centre - Documentary Debate

13:21 Art Gallery of NSW Picks

17:12 White Bay Venue Challenges

22:26 Video Overload Critique

26:32 Installation Missteps

32:48 Final Takeaways

Biennale of Sydney 2026: Rememory is on view until 14 June 2026, free entry

More info: https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/

Review by art critic Christopher Allen: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/culture/worse-than-anticipated-how-the-sydney-biennale-became-a-site-of-mediocrity-and-irrelevance/news-story/efd37fe54c91806748fd89fda76f65f6

Also mentioned in this episode:

Biennale of Sydney: https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/ | https://www.instagram.com/biennalesydney/ | @biennaleofsydney

Venice Biennale episode: https://installationartpodcast.com/bonus-013

Helsinki Biennial episode: https://installationartpodcast.com/bonus-039

Lewers: Pentrith Regional Art Gallery: https://www.penrithregionalgallery.com.au/ | https://www.instagram.com/penrithregionalgallery/

Nora Adwan: https://noraadwan.com/home.html | https://www.instagram.com/adwan.nora/

Chau Chak Wing Museum: https://www.sydney.edu.au/museum/ | https://www.instagram.com/ccwm_sydney/

Michael Dagostino: https://www.sydney.edu.au/museum/about-us/our-people.html

Ema Shin: https://emashin.org/home.html | https://www.instagram.com/ema.shin/

Tuan Andrew Nguyen: https://www.tuanandrewnguyen.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/tuan.andrew.nguyen/

Cambelltown Arts Centre: https://www.campbelltownartscentre.com.au/Home | https://www.instagram.com/campbelltownartscentre/ | @campbelltownartscentre8258

Hoor Al-Qasimi: https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/hoor-al-qasimi/ | https://www.instagram.com/hooralq/

Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige: https://hadjithomasjoreige.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/studiohadjithomasjoreige/

Art Gallery of NSW: https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/

Kuba Dorabialski: https://www.kubadorabialski.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/kubadora/

Mia Wasikowska: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1985859/ | https://www.instagram.com/mia_wasikowska_/

Taysir Batniji: https://www.taysirbatniji.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/taysir_batniji/

Kapwani Kiwanga: https://www.kapwanikiwanga.org/

Ron Mueck: https://ropac.net/artists/63-ron-mueck/ | https://www.instagram.com/ronmueckart/

Mike Hewson: https://mikehewson.co.nz/ | https://www.instagram.com/mikehewson/

MCA: https://www.mca.com.au/ | https://www.instagram.com/mca_australia | @mcaaustralia

White Bay Power Station: https://www.whitebaypowerstation.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/whitebaypowerstation/

Christopher Allen: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Allen_(critic)

Cockatoo Island: https://www.cockatooisland.gov.au/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/harbourtrust/ | @HarbourTrust2088

Frank Sweeney: https://franksweeney.art/ | https://www.instagram.com/frankbeee/

Hui Ye: https://yehui.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/huiyeist/

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

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📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/

Listener feedback form: https://forms.gle/T6ywdFawXWKLu1UR6

Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast

A conversation with New Zealand artist Mike Hewson, recorded inside his monumental installation The Key's Under the Mat at the Art Gallery of New South Wales – a 2,500 square meter underground park complete with working sauna, laundromat, barbecues, DJ booth, recording studio and playground that's broken every visitor record the gallery has ever seen.

Mike's practice straddles the complex lines between art, infrastructure and public liability. He designs playgrounds that councils don't know how to regulate, builds permanent public sculptures that must survive Australian weather conditions and human interference and he takes on legal exposure that would terrify most artists, all while fighting the perception that making functional, interactive work is somehow "beneath" serious art.

Key insights from this episode:

• The Christchurch earthquake moment: barefoot in a broken city, wondering whether he should keep pursuing art

• Project backlash: dealing with public anger, going into debt on his first major commission and lessons learned

• Strategic pivot: setting a new precedent as an artist-engineer

• True scope of the AGNSW project and how he sourced materials for it

• Hard truth and advice: burnout is not a sustainable business model

Mike Hewson is a New Zealand artist based in Sydney. You can find out more about his work on his website https://mikehewson.co.nz/ and follow him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikehewson

See his work in person:

The Key's Under the Mat at AGNSW Tank (open until August 2026) https://mikehewson.co.nz/2025/10/the-keys-under-the-mat

Coal Loader Palm Grove is a permanent public installation at Sydney Fish Markets: https://mikehewson.co.nz/2026/1/coal-loader-palm-grove

Rocks on Wheels public art playground in Soutbank, Naarm (Melbourne): https://mikehewson.co.nz/2022/11/rocks-on-wheels

Pockets Park in Pioneers Memorial Park, Leichhardt NSW: https://mikehewson.co.nz/2022/2/pockets-park

St Peters Fences at Simpson Park, St Peters NSW: https://mikehewson.co.nz/2020/9/st-peters-fences

Illawarra Placed Landscape at Crown Street Mall, Wollongong NSW: https://mikehewson.co.nz/2017/11/illawarra-placed-landscape

02:55 Work Life Balance Reality

05:35 Growing Up in Rural NZ

08:02 From Painting to Installations

19:40 Building Playgrounds as Art

27:37 Precarious Look Safe Design

32:32 Sourcing Found Materials

40:33 Maintenance and Record Crowds

45:41 Afterlife and Financial Reality

58:51 Geopets Art Fair Hack

01:07:17 Contracts, Insurance and Codes

01:20:51 Hard Truths And Advice

01:25:51 After The Mammoth Show

Also mentioned in this episode:

Christchurch earthquake: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Christchurch_earthquake

JR: https://www.jr-art.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/jr/

Columbia University: https://www.columbia.edu/ | https://www.instagram.com/columbia/ | @columbia

Sarah Sze: https://www.sarahsze.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/sarahszestudio

Lloyd’s: https://www.lloyds.com/australia | https://www.instagram.com/lloydsoflondon/ | @Lloydsinsurance

Infrastructure NSW: https://www.infrastructure.nsw.gov.au/ |

Gumtree: https://www.gumtree.com.au/ | https://www.instagram.com/gumtreeaus | @gumtreeaustralia

Lett Thomas Gallery: https://lett-thomas.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/michaellett | https://www.instagram.com/lettthomasgallery

Rirkrit Tiravanija: https://www.davidzwirner.com/artists/rirkrit-tiravanija | https://www.instagram.com/rirkrit_team

Sydney Fish Market: https://www.sydneyfishmarket.com.au/

Images courtesy of the artist and Art Gallery of NSW

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast

📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/

I made a 3-minute listener survey to help shape the podcast's future. What's working? What's not? Who should I interview next? Your feedback genuinely matters. Fill out here: https://forms.gle/qqHJrMXpsC9UYu2m7

Get 15% off your .art domain name: https://get.art/?refdotart=art5044n9z17m

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A conversation with Dutch artist Tanja Smeets, whose site-specific installations employ diverse and industrial materials (concrete spacers, leaf catchers, textiles, ceramics and 3D-printed steel) to create large scale works that appear to grow organically from architecture and cityscapes.

Guided by her catchphrase “Under the pavement the roots are whirling,” Tanja's practice reveals what it takes to work at the intersection of art, craft, technology and collaboration.

Key insights from this episode:

• Why art school felt like failure

• Finding and transforming unusual materials

• Residencies at TextielLab and European Ceramic Work Center: pushing porcelain through frying sieves, learning embroidery and more

• The volcano eruption: teaching an assistant to knot lentils into lycra via Zoom when flights were grounded

• Miami airport interrogation: five suitcases, a letter and threatening border patrol agents with a lecture on art

Tanja Smeets is a Dutch artist based in Utrecht. Her work has been exhibited internationally including Manifesta and Museum Boijmans van Beuningen. See her work in person at

Westerpark, Amsterdam (permanent public sculpture) and Centraal Museum, Utrecht (permanent installation in historic staircase).

03:24 Favorite Quote – Under the Pavement the Roots Are Whirling

09:35 The Iceland Trip That Changed Everything

15:49 From Painting to Installation – When Everything Clicked

20:10 A Government Building Commission – Dripping Through Multiple Floors

22:50 How the Opportunities Started Coming

29:24 TextielLab – Combining Felt with Leaf Catchers

33:09 European Ceramic Work Center Residency

47:47 When the White Cube Doesn’t Work

48:52 Manifesta Barcelona – Installing on 5th-Century Graves

51:17 Building Solo vs Working with Teams

56:33 The Commercial Question – “I’m Always Disappearing into Big Installations”

01:02:10 Miami Airport – Five Suitcases and the Threat of a Lecture

01:06:56 MX3D Collaboration – 3D-Printed Stainless Steel

01:11:43 Finding Technical Collaborators and Pushing Boundaries

01:17:09 Dream Project

01:20:00 Advice for Emerging Artists

Opening of solo exhibition and launch of new publication and film about Tanja’s work: 11 April 2026 at the Utrecht in Leeuwarden.

The book can be ordered via [email protected]

You can find out more about her work at https://www.tanjasmeets.nl/ and follow her on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/studiotanjasmeets/

Also mentioned in this episode:

Dyckman Farmhouse Museum: https://dyckmanfarmhouse.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/dyckmanfarmhouse | @dyckmanfarmhousemuseum8502

Museum Boijmans van Beuningen: https://www.boijmans.nl/en | https://www.instagram.com/boijmans/

TextielMuseum: https://textielmuseum.nl/en | https://www.instagram.com/textielmuseum/

TextielLab: https://textiellab.nl/en

European Ceramic Work Centre: https://ekwc.nl/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/ekwc_oisterwijk/ @sundaymorningekwc6951

David Lynch: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Lynch

Eraserhead: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074486/

Blue Velvet: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090756/

Kunsthal KAdE: https://www.kunsthalkade.nl/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/kunsthal_kade_amersfoort | https://www.youtube.com/user/KUNSTHALKADE

Manifesta: https://manifesta.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/manifestabiennial/ | @Manifesta_foundation

Mondriaan Fund: https://www.mondriaanfonds.nl/en/homepage-2/ | https://www.instagram.com/mondriaanfonds/

Museum of Arts And Design: https://madmuseum.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/madmuseum | @madmuseum

Museum Vizcaya: https://vizcaya.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/vizcaya_museum/ | @VizcayaMuseum

Westerpark: https://www.iamsterdam.com/en/explore/neighbourhoods/westerpark | https://www.instagram.com/iamsterdam

MX3D: https://mx3d.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/mx3d.metal.printing/ | @officialMX3D

Centraal Museum Utrecht: https://www.centraalmuseum.nl/en | https://www.instagram.com/centraalmuseum

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast

📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/

Mentioned in this episode:

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A bonus solo episode about my last minute art trip to Helsinki: what I saw at Helsinki Biennale on Vallisaari island, three must-visit museums (Kiasma, Amos Rex, HAM), and why sometimes the best art experiences require a little effort to reach.

Last August, I hopped a ferry from Estonia to catch the closing days of Helsinki Biennale. In a day and a half, I discovered why island biennales create magic, why Nordic countries do art infrastructure better and what Australia can learn from Finland's approach to supporting artists and making contemporary art accessible to everyone.

This isn't a comprehensive review, it’s my honest impressions, favorite discoveries and a few rants.

What I cover in this episode:

• Why the ferry journey to Vallisaari island matters (hello, Cockatoo Island nostalgia)

• The challenge of installing art outdoors: scale, setting and competing with historic buildings

• Standout works: Sara Bjärland's bronze "inflatable" sculptures, Tania Candiani's immersive bunker installation, Ana Teresa Barboza's woven bark forest

• Three essential Helsinki museums: Kiasma (timeless favorite), Amos Rex (new obsession), HAM (Biennale HQ)

• Gushing about Helsinki Central Library (Oodi): free recording studios, 3D printing, instrument hire – everything Sydney libraries lack…

• Free museum days and artist benefits: how my Australian NAVA card got me free entry in Finland (but not in Sydney... explain that)

00:00 Why I Went To Helsinki Biennale

01:20 Getting to Vallisaari

03:31 Island Setting and Challenges

07:06 Scent Art Surprise

08:46 Standout Works

13:14 Lesson About Rushing

15:28 Rainy Day Museum Crawl: Kiasma

16:32 Amos Rex and HAM

21:44 Finland Artist Perks

23:37 Wrap Up and Listener Poll

Resources:

Listener survey - help shape this podcast! https://forms.gle/r2EN8w9C7wisUxJe7

Send a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast

Write an email: https://installationartpodcast.com/contact

Also mentioned in this episode:

Helsinki Biennale: https://helsinkibiennaali.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/helsinkibiennial/

Vallisaari: https://vallisaari.fi/en_US | https://www.instagram.com/vallisaari.fi

Biennale of Sydney: https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/ | https://www.instagram.com/biennalesydney/ | @biennaleofsydney

Cockatoo Island: https://www.cockatooisland.gov.au/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/harbourtrust/ | @HarbourTrust2088

Olafur Eliasson: https://olafureliasson.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/studioolafureliasson/

Raimo Saarinen: https://www.raimosaarinen.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/raimosaarinen/

Sara Bjarland: https://sarabjarland.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/sbjarland/

Tania Candiani: https://taniacandiani.com/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/tcandiani/

Ana Teresa Barboza: https://www.anateresabarboza.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/anateresa.barbozagubo/

Nabbteeri: https://www.nabbteeri.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/maria_birkhuhn/ | https://www.instagram.com/nabbage/

Kiasma: https://kiasma.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/kiasmamuseum

Amos Rex: https://amosrex.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/amoskonst/

Anna Estarriola: https://www.annaestarriola.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/annaestarriola/

HAM: https://www.hamhelsinki.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/hamhelsinki/

Oodi: https://oodihelsinki.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/oodihelsinki/

NAVA: https://visualarts.net.au/ | https://www.instagram.com/nava_visualarts/

Get up to 40% off your Hostinger plan: https://hostinger.com?REFERRALCODE=INSTALLATIONART

A philosophical conversation with Berlin-based artist Monika Grzymala, whose spatial drawings transform architecture with nothing but kilometers of black tape, intuition and intense physical labor.

Monika's practice is deceptively simple: she works alone, without assistants, using adhesive tape to create immersive three-dimensional drawings that respond to each unique space. But beneath that simplicity we discuss profound questions about ephemerality, energy, presence and what remains when a work only exists for weeks before disappearing…

From training as a stone sculptor to making her first site-specific drawing on ice at a Hamburg skating rink, from dumping all her figurative work after one transformative conversation with her professor to developing custom tape formulas with German manufacturers—Monika's journey reveals how radical simplicity can be the most powerful artistic choice.

Key insights from this episode:

• How one professor's comment changed everything

• The longevity of tape installations: 2-3 months before they fall apart (and why that's intentional)

• Documentation philosophy: why time-lapse videos don't capture the real process

• Living inside an installation: the collector who surrounded herself with Monika's work

• Advice for emerging artists: you don't need funding or large studios—just do it

Monika Grzymala is a Polish artist based in Berlin. You can find out more about her work on her website: http://www.t-r-a-n-s-i-t.net/ and follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/monika.grzymala/

Monika’s publications: https://www.betterworldbooks.com/search/results?q=monika grzymala

She is represented by

Galerie CRONE: https://www.galeriecrone.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/galerie_crone/

BERG Contemporary: https://www.bergcontemporary.is/en | https://www.instagram.com/bergcontemporary/

SECCI Gallery: https://www.seccigallery.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/secci_gallery/

03:20 Studio Rituals

03:48 Berlin Life And Process

05:44 Origins And Training

08:01 Finding The Line

13:25 Ephemeral Tape Philosophy

31:24 Hunting For The Perfect Tape

32:21 Liquid Drawing Mindset

36:14 Funding Ephemeral Installations

38:06 Energy, Memory And Reality

41:31 Logistics And Documentation

56:15 Advice For Young Artists

Also mentioned in this episode:

MoMA: https://www.moma.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/themuseumofmodernart | @themuseumofmodernart

The Drawing Center: https://drawingcenter.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/drawingcenter/

Biennale of Sydney: https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/ | https://www.instagram.com/biennalesydney/ | @biennaleofsydney

Tokyo Art Museum: https://www.tobikan.jp/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/tokyometropolitanartmuseum/ | @tokyometropolitanartmuseum7280

Louise Bourgeois: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louise_Bourgeois | https://www.instagram.com/artistelouisebourgeois/

Documenta: https://documenta.de/en | https://www.instagram.com/documenta_official | @documenta_official

Bogomir Ecker: https://www.artforum.com/events/bogomir-ecker-2-226647/

Olafur Eliasson: https://olafureliasson.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/studioolafureliasson/ Dian Woodner: https://patronview.com/patrons/dian-woodner

Frac Lorraine: https://www.fraclorraine.org/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/fraclorraine/ | @49nord6est-fraclorraine

Kunstlerhaus Dortmund: https://www.kh-do.de/ | https://www.instagram.com/kuenstlerinnenhaus_dortmund | @kunstlerhausdortmund2577

Kunstmuseum Basel: https://kunstmuseumbasel.ch/ | https://www.instagram.com/kunstmuseumbasel/ | @kumubasel

The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive.

🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode.

📢 Follow us on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast

📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com

Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/