Interviews, Conversations, and Chit-Chat (1986-2004)

What do Mike Kelley and his cronies and sometime collaborators Jim Shaw, Paul McCarthy and Tony Oursler talk about when they talk about art? You'll have to crack this book to find out, but expect a heady mix of pop culture, sex, violence, politics and, as always, a strong dose of humor. This volume brings together for the first time Kelley's major interviews with those artists and others over the past 18 years. Kelley is naturally a provocative commentator on his own work and the work of others, but he's also an informed and serious student of his interviewees' oeuvres and asks questions that explore the soul of artistic imagination. Surrealism, the 1960s and institutional cowardice provide fodder for these fascinating conversations.