ROBERT GOBER

When you grow up being taught to worship, whatever that means, there is an array of body-rich symbols: tears, blood, crucifixion, the stations of the cross, transubstantiation... Faith is a belief in something that is irrational, and so to have faith, there is some correlation there with the belief in the art.

I was a gay man living in the epicenter of 20th-century America's worst health epidemic.

You grow up trying to interpret, worshipping, visual symbols. It's a body-soaked imagery that you're looking at.

I think art is about human existence. Almost by default I'm expressing my experiences as a human.

I think the benefit of a Catholic childhood is your belief in visual symbols as transmitters of information and clues about life, whether it's the mystery of life or life in general.

For the most part, works of mine are untitled. There was a brief period where I had poetic titles for works, and they're embarrassing now. I think, for the most part, it's not something that I have talent for.

When I was a young artist, and I would go look at other artists' career retrospectives, and I was often disappointed with the lack of story line... What was missing to me was the story of where the artist came from and how they got to where they were.

Whenever I give a talk about my work I am invariably asked who my influences are. Not what my influences are, but who.. As if the gutter, misunderstandings, memories, sex, dreams, and books matter less than forebears do. After all, in terms of influences, it is as much the guy who mugged me on Tenth Street, or my beloved dog who passed away much too early, as it was Giotto or Diane Arbus.

My problem painting from my life was I found that you can't paint dirt without romanticising it.

For the most part, works of mine are untitled. There was a brief period where I had poetic titles for works, and they're embarrassing now. I think, for the most part, it's not something that I have talent for.

When you grow up being taught to worship, whatever that means, there is an array of body-rich symbols: tears, blood, crucifixion, the stations of the cross, transubstantiation... Faith is a belief in something that is irrational, and so to have faith, there is some correlation there with the belief in the art.

When I was a young artist, and I would go look at other artists' career retrospectives, and I was often disappointed with the lack of story line... What was missing to me was the story of where the artist came from and how they got to where they were.

I was a gay man living in the epicenter of 20th-century America's worst health epidemic.

Whenever I give a talk about my work I am invariably asked who my influences are. Not what my influences are, but who.. As if the gutter, misunderstandings, memories, sex, dreams, and books matter less than forebears do. After all, in terms of influences, it is as much the guy who mugged me on Tenth Street, or my beloved dog who passed away much too early, as it was Giotto or Diane Arbus.

I think art is about human existence. Almost by default I'm expressing my experiences as a human.

My problem painting from my life was I found that you can't paint dirt without romanticising it.

I think the benefit of a Catholic childhood is your belief in visual symbols as transmitters of information and clues about life, whether it's the mystery of life or life in general.

You grow up trying to interpret, worshipping, visual symbols. It's a body-soaked imagery that you're looking at.