(*)APPENDIX to Kerstin Bratsch's "painting" Double Debo.
DEBO EILERS/ KERSTIN BRÄTSCH MARCH 2009
DEBO EILERS: Look how short my hair is. I just cut it yesterday.
KERSTIN BRAETSCH: It is really short. wow!
D: So how much do these paintings go for?
K: Depends where. Here in America? In Dollars, Euros or in African Rand?
D: $?K: 7000
D: And how much are the smaller ones?
K: The Posters? Well they come with the big ones for free.
D: Oh really? Thats a good deal
D: So when you buy one of these you'll get a big Poster
K: Yes. One of these you mean?
D: Oh, so when you buy one of these you will get a big painting
K: Yes. Well it's the title for the painting
D: Do these 2 go together?
K: No this one is Double Debo
D: Oh this one. I see
D: So how big is Kerstin Braetsch's ego??
K: In what kind of measurement are we talking about?.uh, oh...what? Well it depends
D: On what?
K: On the circumstance
D: Right now
K: Right now?...it's hiding behind the painting......What do you think?
D: I don't know I am just asking. Its my job.
K: How big is the ego of the interviewee?
D: What, mine? ...not very big
K: Right now?
D: What about this one?
K: Thats not done
D: When will you know that its done??K: Mhhh, when I run out of paint I guess
D: Is that paint right there?
K: Yeah, well, what else should it be? A sticker?
D: It looks like a print
D: And this is paint too?
K: Same thing
D: So smooth though
K: It is the brush
D: Do you have a smooth brush?
K: Oh this you mean? This is just like a plastic layer......
K: Spray-paint and tape, some kind of collage technique, .... and interference paint
J: Oh so you have a lot of different textures
K: Well, I guess
K: I like this because it changes in the light, the green becomes gold for example.
K: It feels plastic -like no?
D: It feels good.
K: Plastic painting
D: I like the colors on this one
D: Where is Adele, is she still in this studio?
K: Yes, right now she is working on graphic images to be printed on fabrics.
D: Where does she send them to? So she is having the prints done on fabric?
K: Yes, Napkins. Sets. Like “The Private Set”, just two, “The Group Set”, like 4 or 6,or different family sets.
D: Are people going to use them?
K: Ideally!
D: So how many more paintings do you have to do for the show in Paris?
K: I don't know, maybe four
D: That's it?
K: Well I am showing older ones too
D: How many do you have in total
K: 18
D: 18?
K: 18 days , 18 paintings, 18 title-poster, 18 commercials
D: And the paintings are 10000 Euros?
K; Uh, you have a short memory
D: 7000$ how much is...
K: Well that's less than 7000 $ in Euros then
D: Well I don't know how much the Euro goes for
K: Well I don't know either , but its not 10....I wish it was. 6000 something maybe.
D: Is that the same price even though you get a poster with it?
K: Thats the price for the paintings with the poster. Special offer
D: And then you have them in Stuttgart
K: Yes, but thats going to be the ghost-paintings of the paintings in Paris
D: What does that mean?
K: On transparent material so the paintings are double sided, then they can hang in front of the windows, because the space there has windows on both sides. So its all transparent. And you can see both sides of the paintings.
D: So you are not taking these transparent ones to Paris?
K: I might, just a few.
J: Ok, I thought there will go there.
K: I think I like that also, but we have to see.
D: You painted the wall?
K; Yes
D: Just for today?
K: Haha, no
D: Do you paint the wall when you are finished with a group of work?
K: Yes, do you??D: No....maybe. I just had my first wall since recently.
K: Really?
D: I never had a wall since the last couple of weeks
K: So why do you have a wall now??D: I have a wall now at my studio. But I didn't before.
K: You built a wall??D: No, I didn't. So now I have a wall since Nic moved out.
K: Oh great, so how does it feel now? ...dealing with verticality?
D: Yeah, I guess I just deal with it.
K: So how do you deal with cleaning?
D: I just sweep up afterwards.
D: How long have you been painting?
K: Depends what you consider painting. As a kid I always liked to make paintings with sticks in the sand when we went on holiday with my family.
D: You started off with sticks?
K: Yes, sticks
D: So you started painting in the dirt, or sand?
K: Dirt, yes. But then I took a break for 20 years.
D: Whats that coming out of her eye?
K: Oh, a ray of light
D: Is that a ray of light too?
K: That one? Thats more materialized, squeezed light, no?
D: So does that poster go with this painting?
K: Gib Mir Kraft? No that goes with an older painting. We still have to make new Posters for the New Paintings.
D: So who makes these Posters or Adele?
K: We both do them as DAS INSTITUT
D: so How are you doing?
K: ah, you didn't ask me before.
D: How have you been?
K: I am ok
D: So you just had the New York Times here. So you must be good
K: Why?
D: because the New York Times was here.
K: What does that mean??
D: Well, I mean you might be exposed in the front page of the paper, isn't that what everybody wants??
K: Not everybody....Well it was just a photographer and she didn't even have a tripod, so it felt very cas.
D: cash?
K: cas as in casual
D: ah ,cas...It could lead into cash though
K: Thats what I need
D: So how do these big paintings go for these days??
K: well these days they go for 7000 $, coming with a free Title Poster
D: 7000 $ with a Poster
K: Yes, the poster is the Title of the painting
D: So you are going to hang those posters next to it? Uh, its still wet
K: Haha, thats undone, I am sorry, its unfinished
D: So you put it up just for this interview or what??
K: What do you mean? Its my studio
D: Oh yeah, its your studio.
K: So, no, you can hang the poster up or roll it up
D: I am happy to get your paint on me
K: Ok
K: So the title poster.....: that painting is called Double Debo.
D: So get the poster, put it up here and lets see
K: Like here?
D: Ah, yes.
K: Ok
D: So this is the Poster with the painting.
K: It's even matching your shoes .
D: For 7000 $ you get a poster with a painting
K: Special offer.
D: Special offer
K: Basically the poster is additional. Or the painting is additional to the poster.
D: But you get both for that amount. So they are all the same
D: Did you start charging more since you added the posters?
K: Same price thats why I say special offer
D: Did you feel like you needed to add something since the economy is down? Like adding the poster??
K: Basically what I did was adding a Title.
D: Oh, so...
K: Making things more clear. And adding other people , since I didn't do the poster on my own, its a collaboration.
D: What comes first, the posters or the paintings?
K: It depends. Most of the time the paintings, and then Adele and I are deciding on the posters.
D: Well these look good together right here
K: But this one has already its marriage.
D: Well I think a divorce is needed.
K: Think so?
D: Come on. the lines are going up, the colors are the same...
K: Wait, you don't know what kind of poster we will be making for that one!
D: I guess its already made.
K: Lets decide when its done, and then you can choose.
D: Well when will you know when its done?
K: The Poster, well we haven't touched it yet.
D: When will you know when this is done??K: Not yet, I still have paint on my palette.
D: And on the painting and on me.
FINAL OFFER, Kerstin Brätsch, Debo Eilers, NYC, March 2009