Phanton Ambition. Ryan Gander

"Phantom Ambition" is a book published by Tonini Editore and Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Helga de Alvear, Cáceres, on the occasion of the exhibition "Ryan Gander: 'Grunts, hoots, whimpers, barks and screams'".

"Whenever I am unable to sleep, I choose a museum, a space I know well, I choose a theme, I choose artists, artworks, collisions and... I curate. And although I do that only in my head, it seems to do the job... I drop off before I can begin to imagine the opening reception.

I love curating, but 90% of the enjoyment of that act probably constitutes 10% of the job; so I invented an activity for myself that would be more efficient in that pleasure to labour ratio. I call it Phantom Ambitions.

Over the past year or so, whilst making this project, many friends and visitors to the studio who saw these works, surprisingly to me, asked me different questions that invariably led me to consider, and to reconsider, my motives. The questions were in relation to whether I was making an idealised version of reality'... or whether, I guess, I was trying my best? Was my objective to try to make something that would please people? I've often thought that the essence of the motive of an artists actions are almost always more telling, and more interesting, than anything else about their practice."

Ryan Gander, extract from the foreword.