Well it looks like you’re doing OK...

Well, it looks like you’re doing OK... I don’t think they really took it seriously until I called them. It was actually on my birthday when I found out, and told them, 'Hey, I just sold two pieces at Art Basel.' And you know, my dad was like, 'Oh, I guess you’re a real painter now.' That's great! Was that the first time you were at Basel? I didn’t physically go to Basel this year. It was a surprise. I had no idea my work was even there. I had gone the year before just to see a friend’s work, but this year I was in a little show called the Sensei Show at Max Fish and the guy who put it together ended up having a little booth among the smaller venues at Art Basel and called me on my birthday and said, 'Hey, I sold both your pieces I brought on the first day!' It was great because on my birthday I was like, 'I'm 24, is this really life? Am I just kidding myself? Am I letting my family down?' And then I got that call and it was like the first four digit check I ever got from a painting. Before that it was like 'Oh, hey, here’s 30 bucks' from a friend or something.
3 of 14