Most of Ms. Minter’s assistants are women. On the panel, she’d said that was important to her; that and character. One of them, Michelle Matson, a genial blonde, is a contestant on the Bravo reality show Work of Art. The show is airing now, and Ms. Matson’s having been sworn to secrecy by Bravo about its outcome is a subject of good-natured ribbing and speculation around the studio. When The Observer visited, the show was about to premier; Ms. Minter and her assistants said they would watch it together.
“The show has nothing to do with the creative process,” Ms. Minter says. “We all know that. But we’re going to root Michelle on.”
Two weeks after The Observer’s visit, Ms. Matson made runner-up on an episode with her semi-abstract wooden sculpture of a man whose testicles you can tug to give the piece a sculptural erection. Watching the show, we pictured the scene at Atelier Minter: a group of women art workers huddled around a computer monitor, laughing their asses off.
sdouglas@observer.com
