Pippa Possible is a self-proclaimed F(ARTIST). Her art exhibit will be on display at Berbati’s Pan, 19 S.W. 2nd St., throughout the month of February.
What makes Pippa Possible?
What makes Pippa Possible? – Umm – that’s a good question. In a literal sense?
In any sense that you choose to interpret the question.
Alright, well partly it’s living in a culture and condition that allows me to experiment with my sense of identity and doesn’t really chastise me all that often for each identity I have.
That and a sperm and an egg, right?
Yeah, a sperm and an egg and in a very cryptic sense a black panther.
Wonderful!
(She laughs)
Your art, some may be considered kinda pornographic. Is that – intentional -?
Well, uh – OK. The theme of the show that my curator gave me was Valentine’s Day. It kind of tore me up because I was like, “I don’t know how I feel about Valentine’s Day – shit!” And I couldn’t paint for a long time and then I was, like, what do people really want to do on Valentine’s Day? They want to have an orgasm! I’ll just do work about porn and orgasm and how romance and porn interplay with each other – uh yeah, it’s intentionally pornographic, I don’t know if I’m intentionally pornographic, but in some sense I am.
You’ve described yourself as a (f)artist – what does that mean?
Well, it stands for ‘fucking,’ ‘famous,’ ‘fabulous,’ ‘flatulent’ artist, and it’s partly because I love my work, but I see it as an extension of myself in a cellular form. I see it as sort of farts ��- and I love farting. I love farts, they’re great! I think we take ourselves too seriously and I’m in a form of work that most of the people are guilty of taking themselves too seriously, and I can’t take myself too seriously. I’m a (f)artist.
There are a lot of art-gallery openings here tonight, and there’s lots of free wine and cheese, but none of them have ice-cream bars. Why aren’t there more ice-cream bars at art-gallery openings?
Are there any ice-cream bars here?
No.
Ya know, it’s a really good idea. There should be ice-cream bars at art openings. In fact, maybe my next show should be at an ice-cream bar. I like that idea. I mean, everybody is expected to drink at art openings but they should be expected to gorge on sugary, milky substances!
If an anti-capatalist, German terrorist group decided to steal your art to make a statement, because they thought it was so important, would you feel flattered by that or would you be really disappointed?
I would be very flattered. I think any attention is good attention. You can swing it in a good way by being flattered by it and use it to your advantage, and I would do that.
Plus I’d ask them to cut their toes off and give them to me in payment. And then I would string them on a necklace and wear it around. And the toes would still be bleeding, and then they would start rotting and turning all these great purple and green disgusting moldy colors and I’d be, like, smelling like human flesh, and I’d love it!
Since your art is kind of pervy, what if an actual pervert, some creepy guy with really greasy hair, wearing an overcoat, was at your opening and started making all the other art patrons uncomfortable by drooling and writhing on the ground and making crude comments to everyone there – would you be flattered or would you want him to leave?
I like it if anybody likes my work and I don’t care what their reasons are. If it moves them in any way, that’s fantastic. I actually thought about and tried to market this show to the pervy magazines around town, like Exotic Magazine and Suicide Girls and stuff like that. They tried to get me to pay them to promote this show, because they’re market oriented and money oriented, so I said no to them because I don’t need to pay for word of mouth.
So that was deal, but I have no problem if perverted people like my work, and I’m rather perverted so I would expect it. I hope that what it does is change the prudes into perverts, it changes, opens their minds so they can have fun with themselves, that’s what I want.
(A passer-by interjects) Were you a born pervert?
I was pretty pervy as a kid, I think. I hate to use the word pervert, because I don’t believe in it, like I don’t believe in the word crazy. I just think people are in different mental states and open-mindedness about what’s acceptable to them and what’s acceptable in being a social creature.
Yeah, I was pretty open. My best friend was a drag-queen when I was two and I was in love with him, and I just thought that he could just change sexes. That’s partly why my work is what it is, it’s who I grew up around and how magical they seemed to me.
(Passer-by again) What would be a better word besides perversion?
I s’pose, experiential, I think that people are their thoughts and who they are is what they think, and I think most people think “perverted thoughts,” and they are indeed that, and we hide in these ideals of ourselves as pure creatures when purity is in fact just being an organic creature.
Who would you rather have at a dinner party – Andy Warhol or Andy Kaufman?
Why can’t I say both? Okay, I think Andy Kaufman would be a blast, I would like to wrestle with him on top of the dinner table while Andy Warhol looked on and went “hmmm.”
Pee-wee Herman or Emo Phillips?
These are hard ones, but I have always had a thing for Pee-wee.
Ren and Stimpy or Rocky and Bullwinkle?
I’m gonna say, and I know this is probably completely contrary to what you think, but Rocky and Bullwinkle because they referenced one of my favorite books, which is the “Rubaiyat” by Omar Khayam. In their show in one of the episodes they had a “Ruby Yacht” and they sailed in the Ruby Yacht of Omar Khayam.
The Go Go’s or the Shangri-la’s?
Man! – I’m gonna completely change it around and say the Crystals because I’m really interested in their song “He Hit Me and it Felt Like a Kiss,” and I really wanted to ask why they sang that song, but I like all of them.
Ronald Reagan or Ronald McDonald?
That’s a Crispin (her husband) question! And he’d say both; for Crispin I’d say Reagan but I find Ronald McDonald really terrifying.
Charlize Theron or Charlotte, NC?
I’d have dinner with Charlotte, I think there’s probably more interesting people in Charlotte.
Ernest P. Worrel or Alfred E. Neuman?
To satisfy my childhood I’d have to say Alfred E. Neuman with every single one of the Garbage Pail Kids.
Joan Jett or Joan of Arc?
Joan of Arc.
Dr. Who or Dr. Zhivago?
Dr. Who! I had a Dr. Who-themed wedding! He named me Pippa Possible which is my artist name, and that should be in the article.
Hedunno Izzassfrumaholinagroun or Hedummer Dennasackohammers?
Hedunno Izzassfrumaholinagroun, I like that one, it’s kinda pervy, and I would also like to have dinner with a sack of potatos.