The Installation Art Podcast

Anastasia Parmson

Details

A new resource for all things installation art is here! Join host Anastasia Parmson – an artist herself — as she uncovers stories, challenges, and lessons from behind the scenes. The show brings you in-depth conversations with internationally renowned artists and arts professionals who have exhibited installation art on the global stage. In each episode, you will hear about the creative process and the personal journeys of these exceptional artists. We will gain insights into the unique joys and challenges; as well as the logistical and financial aspects of working with installation art. Join us every fortnight as we shine a light on this underserved field, helping artists feel less alone in their studios and providing a platform for community building and knowledge sharing. Subscribe to The Installation Art Podcast on your favourite podcast app and follow us on Instagram @installationartpodcast to stay updated and connect with fellow enthusiasts. Website: https://installationartpodcast.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/installationartsociety/

Recent Episodes

OCT 20, 2026
Bonus Update: Listener Messages & What’s Coming Next
Buy Me A Coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/installationartpodcast Listener poll, if you’d like to fill out or revise: https://forms.gle/r2EN8w9C7wisUxJe7 Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast Sign up to receive new episodes via email: https://installationartpodcast.com/subscribe A short catch-up episode after a break from podcasting over the European summer. I talk about chasing the balance between making this show, making my own work, and having a life. We will hear from you for a change, I share feedback from supporters, from the listener poll and play some listener voice messages. I also report back from the podcast-adjacent things I did manage while away: accidentally gatecrashing a private party at the TAKKK Art Center in Estonia to see Samuelle Green’s installation (the bird’s nest is still in it), skipping the Venice Biennale this year, and a run of Helsinki visits including Edith Karlson at Kiasma, Helsinki Contemporary, Amos Rex and HAM. Season four opening guest also announced! 00:00 Back From Summer Break 01:15 Supporters and Requests 03:05 Listener Poll Feedback 04:20 Your Voice Messages 08:17 TAKKK Art Center visit in Estonia 11:47 Helsinki Art Highlights 15:18 Season Four Teaser Also mentioned in this episode: Chiharu Shiota: https://www.chiharu-shiota.com/ Elizabeth Day in episode 20: https://installationartpodcast.com/elizabeth-day-020 Mike Hewson in episode 41: https://installationartpodcast.com/mike-hewson-041 Sydney Contemporary: https://sydneycontemporary.com.au/ Goldsmiths University: https://www.gold.ac.uk/ Terry Gross, host of Fresh Air: https://www.npr.org/programs/fresh-air/ Guy Raz, host of How I Built This: https://www.npr.org/series/490248027/how-i-built-this TAKKK Art Center: https://takkkdisain.wordpress.com/ Samuelle Green in episode 46: https://installationartpodcast.com/samuelle-green-046 Venice Biennale: https://www.labiennale.org/en Bonus episode about Venice Biennale drama: https://installationartpodcast.com/bonus-031 Edith Karlson in episode 17: https://installationartpodcast.com/edith-karlson-017 Kiasma: https://kiasma.fi/en/ Helsinki Contemporary: https://helsinkicontemporary.com/ Michael Johansson in episode 47: https://installationartpodcast.com/michael-johansson-047 Amos Rex: https://amosrex.fi/ Helsinki Art Museum (HAM): https://www.hamhelsinki.fi/ Bonus episode on art in Helsinki: https://installationartpodcast.com/bonus-039 Richard Wilson: https://www.richardwilsonsculptor.com/ The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive. 🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode. 📢 Follow us on social media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast 📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/
17 MIN
AUG 11, 2026
Michael Johansson: Real Life Tetris, Public Art & Forgetting to Eat
Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast Michael Johansson is a Swedish installation artist based in Malmö, known for precisely assembled sculptures and installations made from ready-made objects that he describes as ‘real life Tetris’. His work has been shown across Europe, Asia and beyond, and ranges from ephemeral site-specific installations to large-scale permanent public commissions cast in bronze. What we cover: • The art school realisation: being technically skilled at drawing is not the same as knowing what kind of art you want to make • Sourcing from flea markets and secondhand stores • Institutional installations made entirely from objects borrowed from a museum's own back rooms and storage • Residencies for installation artists and the newer model he thinks would work much better • The Taiwan passport disaster: two days to install a large site-specific work and why it turned out almost too good to be true • Time as the greatest challenge: procrastinating until the last possible moment and forgetting to eat • Moving a whole city: why an entire Swedish town is being relocated and how his new project is linked 09:00 Growing Up and Early Making 10:42 Finding Artistic Direction 13:15 Into Installations and Public Art 15:37 First Breakthrough Opportunities 18:08 Ready-Made Process Rules 20:42 Sourcing and Colour Logic 36:32 Fabricators and Collaborations 40:00 Residencies Reality Check 43:59 Taipei Install Panic 46:52 Afterlife of Installations 53:37 Work Life Balance Reset 01:00:02 Hard Truths and Highlights 01:07:16 Advice and Dream Projects Michael Johansson is based in Malmö, Sweden. You can find out more about his work on his website: https://www.michaeljohansson.com/ and follow him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michaeljohansson/ Michael works with several international galleries: Aeroplastics in Belgium: https://www.aeroplastics.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/aeroplastics_gallery/ Helsinki Contemporary in Finland: https://helsinkicontemporary.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/helsinkicontemporary/ GSA Gallery in Sweden: https://gsa.se/ | https://www.instagram.com/gsagallerystockholm/ | @gsagallery1690 Galleri Arnstedt Östra Karup in Sweden: https://www.galleriarnstedt.se/ | https://www.instagram.com/galleriarnstedt/ Galerie Ramakers in the Netherlands: https://www.galerieramakers.nl/ | https://www.instagram.com/galerieramakers2 Galeria Enrique Guerrero in Mexico: https://www.galeriaenriqueguerrero.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/galeriaenriqueguerrero/ Massimo Carasi – The Flat: https://www.carasi.it/ | https://www.instagram.com/theflat_massimocarasi Galerie Hartwich in Germany: https://www.galerie-hartwich.de/ | https://www.instagram.com/galeriehartwich 44309//Gallery in Germany: https://44309gallery.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/44309gallery/ Galleri Christoffer Egelund in Denmark: https://christofferegelund.dk/ | https://www.instagram.com/gallerichristofferegelund/ Also mentioned in this episode: Club Mate: https://www.club-mate.de/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/clubmate_original/ Lego: https://www.lego.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/lego | @LEGO Airfix: https://uk.airfix.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/officialairfix/ | @OfficialAirfix Preview Berlin: https://www.previewberlin.de/ Skog Art Space: https://skogart.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/skogartspace/ Helsinki Contemporary: https://www.helsinkicontemporary.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/helsinkicontemporary/ The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large-scale or immersive. 🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode. 📢 Follow us on social media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast 📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/
79 MIN
JUL 14, 2026
Samuelle Green: Immersive Paper, Career Moves & Reflective Sculpture
Samuelle Green grew up in rural Pennsylvania in a family of makers and studied art at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia and Parsons in New York. After nearly 20 years in NYC working across galleries, museums, fabrication and film sets, she made a pivotal decision: leave the city to have the space to finally build the work she had always wanted to make. That work is large scale immersive installations built from rolled cones of reclaimed books and found paper. Exhibited across the US as well as in China, Italy, France and Estonia. Green’s work has also appeared on HBO and AMC+ and won the Arte Laguna Prize in Venice. What we cover: • The decision to leave New York City after nearly 20 years to reclaim her studio practice • What it takes to create immersive installations out of paper and what happens when huge panels of work go missing two weeks before a show • The accidental acoustic discovery: paper installations as anechoic chambers, concert venues and restaurant sound dampeners • Creating art for TV and film sets and what artists should know before saying yes • Reflective outdoor sculptures activated only by car headlights and flash photography and pivoting your medium after finding success Samuelle Green is based in rural Pennsylvania and represented by Ivy Brown Gallery in New York and Bonham Gallery in Arrowtown, New Zealand. Her work is also available through Holly Hunt Design showrooms across the US. You can see her reflective installation in person near Cochecton Fire Station at 54 County Road 114 in Cochecton, New York. Find out more about her work on her website: https://samuellegreen.com and follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samuellegreen 03:44 Growing Up Creative 05:58 Leaving New York 08:10 First Big Break 09:49 Crowdfunding the Installation 15:33 Paper Durability and Storage 16:54 Install Timeline and Logistics 20:42 Safety and Public Interaction 22:51 Overseas Exhibitions 31:21 Grant Funded Pivot To Public Art 34:34 TV Film Set Work 42:53 Studio Practice And Sketches 55:45 Sound And Silence Also mentioned in this episode: Tyler School of Art: https://tyler.temple.edu/ | https://www.instagram.com/tyler_artandarchitecture/ Pearl Paint: https://www.pearlpaintco.com/ Parsons School of Design: https://www.newschool.edu/parsons/ | https://www.instagram.com/TheNewSchool/ | @thenewschool Hatch Fund: https://thehatchfund.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/hatchfund/ Rosco flame retardant: https://au.rosco.com/en/products/roscoflamex | https://www.instagram.com/rosco_labs/ | @rosco_labs TAKKK Symposium: https://www.takkksymposions.ee/en/sümpoosion | https://www.instagram.com/takkkkunstikeskus/ Holly Hunt Design: https://www.hollyhunt.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/hollyhuntdesign/ | @hollyhuntdesign Art on Paper New York: https://ny.thepaperfair.com/ Morris Museum: https://morrismuseum.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/morrismuseum/ | @morrismuseum131 Taizé: https://www.taize.fr/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/taize | @taize The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive. 🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode. 📢 Follow us on social media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast 📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/
63 MIN
JUN 30, 2026
Katriina Campitelli: What a Public Art Curator Actually Does
I made a 3-minute listener survey to help shape the podcast's future. Your feedback genuinely matters. Fill out here: https://forms.gle/qqHJrMXpsC9UYu2m7 Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast Katriina Campitelli is a Toronto-based public art curator with Finnish and Italian roots who has spent over five years commissioning permanent and temporary public art across Canada. She started during the pandemic by creating a projection mapping festival when galleries shut down, and hasn't stopped since. This is a conversation from the other side of the public art table: what do public art curators actually do, what they are looking for and what many artists get wrong. Katriina's work spans permanent commissions to ephemeral festivals, sculpture gardens and community engagement programs. This episode is essential listening for any artist thinking about making the jump into public art. But it's equally fascinating for anyone who's ever walked past a sculpture and wondered how it got there. What we cover: • The percent-for-art funding model and why most permanent public art is tied to infrastructure budgets • What a public art curator actually does start to finish • Why the only way to learn public art is to make public art and why that's a genuine problem given that public art cannot fail • The Drunk Frat Boy test: what your work needs before it can be installed in a public space • The giant chrome cow that led to two years of community backlash • Why Maurizio Cattelan's middle finger outside the Milan stock exchange became a permanent installation • What selection panelists notice (and remember) about artists and why being kind is a strategic career choice • Why public art matters beyond aesthetics: as a tool for economic development, wayfinding, community belonging and joy 05:40 Growing Up Between Cultures 07:20 Master's in Italy 10:23 What a Public Art Curator Does 17:19 Finding Artists 19:16 How to Start in Public Art 30:00 Community Buy-In and Cautionary Tales 37:14 Temporary vs Permanent Public Art 38:24 Design Longevity Rules 47:30 Community Engagement Wins 57:36 Advice for Applicants 01:03:46 Career Highlights Katriina Campitelli is based in Toronto, Canada. Find out more about Katriina’s work on her website https://katcampitelli.ca/ and follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katcampitelli/ Also mentioned in this episode: JR: https://www.jr-art.net/ | https://www.instagram.com/jr/ Percent For Public Art: https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/planning-development/official-plan-guidelines/design-guidelines/percent-for-public-art-inventory/ Ron Baird: https://ronbairdartist.com/ National Film Board of Canada: https://www.nfb.ca/ | https://www.instagram.com/onf_nfb/ | @nfb Maurizio Cattelan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurizio_Cattelan | https://www.instagram.com/mauriziocattelan/ Francesco Perilli: https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francesco_Perilli_(artista) Joel Sears: https://joelsears.com/about-joel/ Alex Seton episode: https://installationartpodcast.com/alex-seton-024 The High Line: https://www.thehighline.org/ | https://www.instagram.com/highlinenyc Fourth Plinth: https://www.london.gov.uk/programmes-strategies/arts-and-culture/current-culture-projects/fourth-plinth-trafalgar-square Anish Kapoor: https://anishkapoor.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/dirty_corner Claes Oldenburg: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claes_Oldenburg Myfanwy MacLeod: https://www.myfanwymacleod.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/mittens_macleod_again/ Pasi Rauhala: https://pasirauhala.fi/ | https://www.instagram.com/pasirauhala/ Korkeasaari Zoo: https://korkeasaari.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/korkeasaari/ | @Korkeasaareneläintarha Amos Rex Museum: https://amosrex.fi/en/ | https://www.instagram.com/amoskonst/ Toronto Sculpture Garden: https://www.toronto.ca/explore-enjoy/history-art-culture/public-art/public-art-monuments-collection/comp-sculpture-garden/ National Gallery of Canada: https://www.gallery.ca/ | https://www.instagram.com/NatGalleryCan/ | @ngcmedia The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive. 🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode. 📢 Follow us on social media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast 📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/
70 MIN
JUN 17, 2026
Doing Public Art His Own Way: Aaron T Stephan
I made a 3-minute listener survey to help shape the podcast's future. Your feedback genuinely matters. Fill out here: https://forms.gle/qqHJrMXpsC9UYu2m7 Leave a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/installationartpodcast Aaron T Stephan is a sculptor and public artist who is so interested in process and materials, he builds and installs nearly every project himself. His permanent installations can be found all over the USA and he has also created numberous gallery installations and performative events. His work has been acquired by institutions like Portland Museum of Art, John Michael Kohler Arts Center and Farnsworth Art Museum. This conversation is candid, funny and full of hard-won insight. Aaron grew up on a self-sustaining hippie farm in rural Maine where self reliance, making and fixing things was expected. That relationship with objects, materials and technique has never left him and sits at the core of everything he makes. What we cover: • Proposing projects you have no idea how to execute and teaching yourself new fabrication techniques on the fly • Performative works where he builds structures around audiences mid-dinner or installs work as a live performance on-site • Navigating job sites where artists have essentially no power and the only leverage you have is that they want you to leave • What it actually takes to work at public scale and establishing a practice that lets you fail before you're locked in • Why the projects that nearly break you are always the best ones • Advice to artists who are intrigued by public art Aaron T Stephan lives and works in Portland, Maine. You can see his permanent installations across the US, for example Woven Lines at City of Altoona, IA, Paths Rising at Tampa International Airport, Point of View at Salt Palace Convention Center, Salt Lake City and more. More information on his website: https://aarontstephan.com and his Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aarontstephan/ Watch Aaron’s TED talk performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=697QUP6iYw8 05:23 Childhood And Making 08:14 Art School And Wandering 09:46 How He Got Into Big Installations 11:12 Guardrail Knot Story 13:35 Torture And Magic 18:01 Building It Yourself 19:45 Funding Realities 24:48 Building Site Chaos 29:30 Hiring An Actor To Play Him At Openings 33:57 Public Art Hard Truths 38:59 Concrete Block Vortex Idea 47:13 Advice To Artists Also mentioned in this episode: Tampa International Airport: https://www.tampaairport.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/flyTPA | @FlyTPA San Diego International Airport: https://www.san.org | https://www.instagram.com/sandiegoairport/ Texas Tech University: https://www.ttu.edu | https://www.instagram.com/texastech/ La Croix: https://www.lacroixwater.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/lacroixwater/ The Art Angle: https://news.artnet.com/multimedia/the-art-angle | https://www.instagram.com/artnet | @artnet Purchase College: https://www.purchase.edu/ | https://www.instagram.com/purchasecollege/ | @PurchaseCollege SUNY New Paltz: https://www.newpaltz.edu/ | https://www.instagram.com/sunynewpaltz | @sunynewpaltz TEDxDirigo: https://www.tedxdirigo.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/tedxdirigo/ https://www.ted.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/ted | @TED Maurizio Cattelan: https://www.perrotin.com/en/artists/maurizio-cattelan | https://www.instagram.com/mauriziocattelan/ Sears, Roebuck & Co: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sears Matthew Mazzotta: https://www.matthewmazzotta.com/ | https://www.instagram.com/matthewmazzotta/ The Installation Art Podcast is a show about people who love and work with the contemporary art medium of installation. The host Anastasia Parmson, an artist herself, interviews internationally renowned artists and arts workers about the intricacies and behind-the-scenes stories of creating and showing work that is site-specific, ephemeral, large scale or immersive. 🔔 Hit subscribe or follow wherever you’re listening to never miss a new episode. 📢 Follow us on social media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/installationartpodcast/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@installationartpodcast 📚 More information about the show and previous episodes: www.installationartpodcast.com Your host Anastasia Parmson: www.anastasiaparmson.art https://www.instagram.com/anastasiaparmson.art/
64 MIN