David Colosi Home

There is more to vision
than meets the eye.

Nelson Goodman

We read as we look
because we interpret as we see.

Arthur C. Danto

Art is not difficult because it wishes to be difficult,
but because it wishes to be art.

Donald Barthelme

Least of all should an intellectual be there to make his/her audiences feel good:  the whole point is to be embarrassing, contrary, even unpleasant.

Edward Said

I have tremendous respect for any institution that would take the risk of giving its stamp of approval to work that is difficult, disturbing, confrontational, politically volatile, and of uncertain market value at best. That means that the institution in question must believe in the work for its own sake, and that kind of support is more important to me than anything else.

Adrian Piper

I see the music as if it were a three-dimensional painting.

Anthony Braxton

I hear a lot of artists and viewers alike profess how important it is to make art for everyone. They think art should be something that everyone can understand. They wear this guiding principle like a badge of honor and have only disdain for what they deem as esoteric art (poetry, music, dance, all disciplines inclusive). This motivation is generic and uninteresting to me. I am more motivated and inspired by complexity, maximalism, and esotericism than simplicity, minimalism, and universality. I make art for one person. When you enter my work I want you to feel alone, like you’re the only person on the inside who really feels and understands what is happening, similar to the private experience of reading a novel. While you are experiencing the process, you are also feeling sorry for all of the people who are missing out. This is yours, something that is happening exclusively within you. Yet you are conflicted: you want to share this with someone, but you also cherish the secrecy. It is fine with me if thousands or millions have unique singular experiences, but I am making it for one, or I should say for one person at a time. If people want to share the experience with others, that’s fine. If not, that’s fine, too. Somewhere along the way that one person might meet another who appreciates the work in a similarly unique way. They connect and fall in love. In this case, I might inflate my target audience to two.

David Colosi