Luther Konadu – Season 9, Episode 1

Season 9 of Momus: The Podcast launches with Luther Konadu, an artist and publisher based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Reading from an influential book in his practice—The Narrow Door (Graywolf Press, 2016), subtitled “A Memoir of Friendship,” by Paul Lisicky—Konadu speaks with Sky Goodden about the intricacies, influences, and productive frictions of working with your friends. “I think because we've known each other [a long time], any kind of criticism that can come our way is seen as a sign of love… holding each other ahead of time before we step into the world.”

As the publisher of Public Parking and co-founding publisher of Carnation, Konadu also reflects on the pressures and rewards of producing art publications that respond to a regional context while operating within an international discourse—reaching beyond borders and speaking to diaspora. Threading that needle, alongside an art practice that features and involves members of his community, requires clarity, care, and a commitment to honesty. “I think maybe that's part of what attracted me to Paul's work. The very notion of talking about friendship in a book-length form is a way of talking about something that isn't talked about.”

Momus: The Podcast is edited by Jacob Irish, with production assistance from Chris Andrews.

Thanks to Luther Konadu for his contribution to this season.