/ Corice Arman Interview—The New York Time

Interview content: Corice Arman

Arman and I met in 1968 and moved into this building.In 1985,we brought some of these objects with us into this apartment.There was at one point about 17 different collections.One object, in particular, which is very dear to me is a necklace- an African necklace.

And why so dear to me, because we had our first child.And we had decided that we would move.So, we were able to amass $10 dollars to see about moving into looking for a different place and one day, Arman came home and said,“Honey, we’re not moving anymore,” and I said “why?”.He said, “$10 we had saved went to buy this Africa art piece.”.

It was my husband who brought me to African Arts.I knew about fashion, a great deal.But he taught me about African arts, and from there, it just snowballed.We would go to the different galleries and auctions to buy works, and because, of course, there is nothing left in Africa,It all left so many years ago.

The furniture is Arman’s,because he used musical instruments a great deal in his work.He kept the cases in which they came in,and decided to make furniture out of them.We love living with beautiful things and it's a class.I mean, the things, too, blend well well together.The Japanese art works very well with the… with the African art and it is the high level of each different culture, which is what makes it very special.That's why they blend well together because of, I think, the quality.

The first two Warhol portraits of me were made in 1977.Arman and I decided to do this.And they were the first portraits that Andy had ever made below the shoulders; you can see the texture; you see the paint stroke.They are really quite beautiful.Two paintings are hanging at a different place on this wall over here, and he looked at them and said to me,“Corice, you need an update.”.Arman and I commissioned to do Arman’s portraits,which are also hanging there, and it was Arman who put all of the portraits hanging there,so it looks like one big painting.

I created a home where it was warm and comfortable, and Arman created the rest of it. The fact that we collaborated, I mean,we just“Do it”.There wasn’t thinking about“I take the left side, and you take this side.”. He was very much involved and he enjoyed making our home something very special.And he didn't like so much having his own works hanging around in the house. Whenever there were works of his, it would be because I insisted that I wanted his works in our living room as well.

I love to entertain to cook dinner and our dinners are called the Arman-&-Corice Salon, because people really enjoyed coming.For me, a successful dinner is when people leave exchanging their names and numbers and cards, and, you know,contact each other afterwards.And, I mean, that’s really great.

In Paris, when we were together, we met the owner of a foundry, bronze foundry,and I remember Arman telling him, “I would love to do these works in bronze, so that they can just be independent and stand on their own,and I'm not too sure how to do that.”.So, this started the whole collaboration with Régis Bocquel.

Interactives are the sculptures that have the hinges on them. When the hinges… when they’re closed, you have your typical classical sculptures and when you open them, you interact with them. It becomes an Arman’s; you’re gonna have a different piece every day when you want,depending on how much you pull it apart and how much you close, like an accordion, if you will.

He did a series of paintings called Homage to Van Gogh.He made the paintings with paint brushes, and he got the this swirl of the starry night and all that out of these very rigid object.I think it’s just so beautiful.

We listened to music when he worked; always listen to music.I would go out sometimes and come home; he was still working, and I could hear the music blasting in the street.He loved saying, you know, how many things he was able to accomplish in a day, and he was…it was mesmerizing; I couldn't keep up with him.

He really lived to work.