Sir Norman Rosenthal

Matthew Stone and friends interview Sir Norman Rosenthal.

Matthew Stone: What do you have faith in?

Sir Norman Rosenthal: Love, art, music and letters.

MS: How can we change the world and what is there to be done?

NR: By converting everyone in the world to love, art and music.

MS: Do you hope to be remembered and what for?

NR: I believe in the ephemeral, which is why I like making exhibitions. They disappear as everything will sooner or later.

Todd Hart: What's the best example of Art really changing the world for the better?

NR: I don't really believe in the concept of best, except at the subjective moment of confrontation with a work of art when maybe there is an illusion of "best". My tastes in art happen to be very eclectic as they also are in music.

So one minute before doing this little blog for you I was listening to Beethoven's Diabelli Variations and if everybody would listen to that simultaneously it would change the world for the better, but equally it might be a drawing or a social sculpture of Joseph Beuys.

Boo Saville: What do you think happens when we die?

NR: Almost certainly nothing but maybe it could be everything that would be a beautiful surprise.

Kate Moross: If you had the choice between either being able to manipulate space or time which one would you choose, and what would you do?

NR: I suppose I would like to be able to go back into history at will and even fast forward into the future.


MS: What question should be added to this list?

NR: Why are we alive at all? It is after all a very strange state to find ourselves in.