ASPEN ART MUSEUM Aspen Spirit
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company, it was the rst time I realized the disparity and just how unstructured the art world is in terms of nancing and even contracts. The distribution and rights structures in each industry are also very dierent in a way that I nd fascinating. CB In the entertainment industry here in California, there’s a lot of policy and legislation that supports the growth of the community. Also, you have all of the labor unions that are advocating for the various groups. At LACMA, we’ve undergone a major new building project and capital campaign. We had set ourselves such an ambitious goal, and it has been really wonderful how many people from all dierent sectors have come out in support, recognizing that bricks and mortar still count and that people want a place where they can come together and have a shared experience. That, I think, bodes well for the future of institutions. AD I went to Aspen for the rst time a few months ago to give a talk about John Chamberlain at the Aspen Art Museum. I had no idea what to expect, but it was just so beautiful and calming. And the community there, especially at the museum, was equally nestling—so warm and welcoming. Very rarely when I give a talk some- where do I think, I want to go back there, but it was so amazing. What a cool place to have expansive conversa- tions! I feel like it’s the perfect place for that. CB We go way back with Aspen. My dad, who’s 84, still skis Aspen Mountain and hasn’t missed a season there since 1954. Aspen is my happy place. We have a house right on the river and with all those negative ions coming o, it’s the most relaxing place for me anywhere in the world. And, of course, I love the community. It’s international and the people living there, both full- and part-time, all come together to support music, lm, art and sporting events. You get everything you need in one small town and there’s never a dull moment.
histories that involve China, Hong Kong and activism. We’ve been talking to each other a lot lately about ways to look at history and incorporate specic and perhaps lesser-known moments into lmmaking in the art world. CB I’m inspired by Judy Baca—by her large murals, how she brings together members of the community to participate in the experience of making art, and her depictions of California. I also think the work of Louise Bourgeois is extraordinary. I was read- ing a book about her recently: she’d have to wait until her kids went to sleep at night to go into her studio and make her art. It’s something I can relate to, being a working mother of four kids. I write a lot, including a lot of speeches. When the kids were little, I would write at night: that’s when the house was quiet and I could make a cup of tea and get creative. They are older now, but those quiet, productive moments after very busy days are a nice memory. AD In television, I’m a religious watcher and rewatcher of the show 30 Rock , with Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin, which is maybe random, but I watched it as a kid and I watch it all the way through probably once, or maybe even twice, a year. I think it has some of the best writing in television, and most inventive narratives. It’s full of riddles. On the lm side, I’m really interested in Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s career. His lms ask aesthetic and political questions about the history of popular and arthouse cinema and melodrama, and the way the state interacts with the media; he wraps all this in interest- ing, personal narratives. I also really love the Korean lmmaker Hong Sang- soo, whose lms are almost like little drawings of people hanging out. CB For me, Quentin Tarantino is an extraordinary lmmaker. He’s so pure in his approach and his characters are rich and complex. He’s going to be shooting his tenth and, he says, nal project, here in California. It’s in our lm and television tax credit program, which I administer. I think Greta Gerwig’s approach to lmmaking is so clever, creative and bold. Barbie was a marvel in so many ways. It really got people back into the theater. AD I nally saw her Little Women . I feel like there are few lms made today that I would call delightful, but that is one of them. I am curious to know more about the lm and television tax credits you mentioned. CB Well, there’s a lot of competi- tion out there for California—many places in the US and other countries that are trying to lure production away from here. So, we are always asking how we can improve our competitiveness, and one way is our lm and television tax credit program. One of the primary deciding factors for executives when choosing where to shoot is whether or not they’ll be able to receive tax credits. So, this is really an economic develop- ment tool to encourage productions to stay in California, which, of course, then translates into job sustainability and economic growth. AD I am interested in various tax credit structures, and I know very little about most of them. In the lm industry, people are making budgets and contracts and getting permits, while this is all so vague and unclear in the art world. When I was working in development at an artist’s lm
Right, top to bottom A woman looks at Louise Bourgeois’s Spider during a Christie’s New York press preview, 2019. Photograph: Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images Still from 30 Rock , 2010. Courtesy: Collection Christophel/ Alamy Stock Photo Still from Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Lili Marleen , 1981. Courtesy: Photo 12/ Alamy Stock Photo Mountains in Aspen. Courtesy: Steve Boice/ Alamy Stock Photo
This conversation was moderated by Vic Brooks , a consultant for the Aspen Art Museum. She lives in Shady, New York . Colleen Bell is director of the California Film Commission. She lives in Los Angeles. Aria Dean is an artist and writer. She lives in New York.
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