Conversation with Renee Petropoulos, Los Angeles, 2003

In this conversation, Renee Petropoulos reflects on how female artists in the 1970s began working outside traditional gallery settings due to a lack of institutional support. They found opportunities in public projects and unconventional spaces where funding was more accessible. Petropoulos notes that artists like Mary Miss, Jody Pinto, and Nancy Holt, who emerged from earth art and feminist practices, were among those who shifted away from galleries and museums. This marginalization inadvertently provided them with a platform to test new ideas and challenge the status quo. She also highlights the work of Adrian Piper, who responded to the political climate (e.g. the Vietnam War) by shifting her practice to public performances. However, Petropoulos stresses that to influence change within the art world, artists must engage with institutions rather than operate entirely outside them: “It is a monolith, you know, it’s a big machine, right, that tries to homogenize everything, make it workable…” When artists reintegrate their works and ideas into the institutional framework, they can initiate meaningful dialogue and critique.

Petropoulos introduces a long-term project involving architects to propose a new kind of domestic dwelling, a vision for communal living. This concept is rooted in practical needs rather than utopian ideals. Integral to the project is the challenge of avoiding historical models, instead opting for the anonymity of structures like gas stations and mini marts, which make them ideal for flexible design without a fixed location. Communal living, she argues, can liberate women by redistributing domestic responsibilities. Petropoulos notes the importance of privacy and the possibility to work and live individually within a shared space: “Virginia Woolf once said, you need a space where you can think and nobody interrupts you.” She also discusses the process of making her filmic work, Two or Three Things I Know About Gas Station Mini Marts, in relation to the project.

The conversation centers on historical and contemporary perceptions of cultural and societal structures. Petropoulos emphasizes the importance of recognizing and understanding differences rather than striving for homogeneity. She reflects on how language embeds colonial and hierarchical assumptions, and on how to alter these power structures: “Because if you change the way you speak about something, you immediately change the way you think about something, right?” She suggests that smaller, less visible efforts might be more effective in resisting assimilation into dominant structures, citing the need to adapt and find alternative strategies when conventional power dynamics are insurmountable.