The Artist’ Questionnaire:
Kasper Bosmans

1

Q: Goldin is God, Bourgeois is Buddha, Rauch is Ra, you are… ?

KB: Bosmans from the forest.

2

Q: Describe your studio in no more than five words.

KB: Hot mess, growing archive.

3

Q: Is there a routine or ritual you’ve developed while making art?

KB: I always start by taking off my rings before making sketches.

4

Q: If you could collaborate with any artist (dead or alive) on a single piece, who would it be and what would you create?

KB: I’d see myself casting rings with Rudolf II, the queer Habsburg emperor who secretly made jewellery in Prague Castle. In my mind’s eye, I can conjure up a Ghost pottery scene with a hot crucible instead of a potter’s wheel.

5

Q: Practical and financial considerations aside, in which city would you like to live and work?

KB: Kathmandu.

6

Q: If you could erase one piece of art from history, what would it be and why?

KB: I wouldn’t mind removing a few busts and portraits of our previous rulers from public spaces. Eternal magnificence and splendour don’t make sense today.

7

Q: Can you remember the first time you felt awe in front of a work of art?

KB: I vividly remember a painting by Jan van Kessel that got my knickers in a twist.

8

Q: If your art could start a revolution, what cause would it champion?

KB: Love and empathy.

9

Q: Is there a museum that you always return to?

KB: The Royal Museum of Art and History in Brussels, a big but messy institution with an impressive collection. I love getting lost in their warren of archaeological finds and Art Nouveau objects.

10

Q: If you were to create a self-portrait without showing your face, how would you represent yourself?

KB: There are ghost stories from my region that would scare the crap out of me as a kid. They always mention the appearance of the ‘fire man’ or ‘fire ghost’. In one of them half a red man appears in the corner of a farmhouse bedroom. I find it quite touching that it’s half a man, incomplete, insufficient, unfinished or damaged. There’s something deeply twisted and psychologically profound behind this description. To answer your question: half a red man.

11

Q: Which musician or band best mirrors your artistic practice?

KB: Bert Kaempfert or Tante Leen.

12

Q: Which work of art gives you comfort over and over again?

KB: I live with a cherrywood sculpture by Richard Rezac. It makes me happy.

13

Q: If you could have any mythical creature as a studio assistant, what would it be and how would it help?

KB: A sheela na gig could be quite entertaining, but she might turn out to be too much of a distraction. My studio already resembles the lair of a witch’s coven as it is.

14

Q: Imagine you’re hosting a dinner party with three famous artists. Who are they, and what are you cooking?

KB: I wouldn’t mind witnessing a cat fight between Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. But a nice meal in the company of Albrecht Dürer and the Mexican artists who made the feather works he admired so much would be quite exciting. I’d cook something simple and offer a dame blanche for dessert.

15

Q: Imagine you’ve been commissioned to create a piece that can be seen from space. What would it be and where would you place it?

KB: I guess I should plant a forest, as my name suggests.

16

Q: The art world collapses. What profession are you switching to?

KB: This summer I helped out a friend in his countryside restaurant when their dishwasher fell ill. He offered me a job there. The offer might still be standing by the time this cultural collapse takes place.