“My cat women are independent, feral, and unpredictable creatures, living by their own set of rules,” says Irena Jurek of the eccentric protagonists that populate many of her drawings and paintings. “They're comfortable in their own furry skin. They take possession of their femininity and sexuality.” You can see a bevy of these coquettish kittens in "The Fury of Sunsets,” Jurek's two-person show with Michael Dotson at New York's Zürcher Studio from August 28 through September 28. We asked the artist to share her feline-approved playlist, and discovered why Missy Elliot is better than T.S. Eliot.
“Miss Kittin,” Frank Sinatra
“Miss Kittin is my all time favorite musical artist, because I can really relate to her. She’s just like me, the down-to-earth girl next door! If I could only listen to one song, on repeat, for the rest of eternity, this would be it.”
“Shave ’Em Dry,” Lucille Bogan
“Sigh, whenever I listen to Lucille Bogan, I end up feeling really nostalgic and wishing we could all go back to the good old days, back when no one had ADHD or smartphones to distract them from having amazing sex all day long.”
“Fuck the Pain Away,” Peaches
“Listening to Peaches is a very cathartic experience. Fucking the pain away is excellent advice for everybody, not just for artists, but it’s especially good advice for artists since we’re more sensitive.”
“Je T’Aime Moi Non Plus,” Brigitte Bardot
“Whenever I’m entertaining in my studio, I like to put this on. It puts my visitors at ease. It’s just like cotton candy: pink, fluffy, sweet, and it sticks to everything.”
“Work It,” Missy Elliott
“This is a very special song for me and my best friend, Natalie Wood. Yes, Natalie Wood is still alive, and we hang out all the time. Nat has the voice of a songbird and I melt whenever she sings Missy to me, particularly when she gets to the chocha part! Last summer, I did an entire series of drawings based on just the line, 'take my thong off and my tail go vaaaaaroom.' Even if I dedicated my entire life’s work to studying this song, I still wouldn’t come close to deciphering all the paradoxes it contains and the full depth of meaning. It’s a lot like T.S. Eliot's 'Wasteland' in that way, only it’s obviously way better, because you can actually grind to it.”
