I've done A4 size drawings since I studied in the Academy. I was traveling all the time between Spain and Finland and for the drawings I didn't need studio facilities. An important gallerist gave a lecture at the Academy and stated that if you want to be a famous artist you must do monumental work. Without seeing my stuff he laughed at artists doing small drawings. Of course, he was right.

I should do big paintings and I try once in a while. It never really works out and I give up but try always again. The only viable solution is to sell first enough drawings and then hire a good assistant to do the paintings. I can't have my paintings done in the Painting Village in Shenzhen (where the kitsch art for the Western market is made) but I need a great assistant who knows to do good bad painting. My wife says that that person doesn't exist.

By the way, the monumental gallerist is now bankrupted.

We have municipal elections in Spain on Sunday. I have right to vote, because I’m a citizen of an European Union country. In our tiny village, there is  a biparty system of the conservative Partido Popular, People’s Party, and the liberal Partido Socialista Obrero Español, Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party, which is in power both in Spain and our municipality.

On the village level the initials don’t really matter but the honesty and ambition of the candidates. We have many things wrong in the village and I’ve been tempted to vote the PP in opposition (Actually, I’m sympathizer of Izquierda Unida, United Left,  which doesn’t present a list in the bipartite village) which has a smart program and wants to change things.

Now, the former prime minister, PP’s José María Aznar, said that these elections are not about local administration but terrorism. According to him, every vote to other parties than his goes to ETA, the Basque terrorist organization. PP is going to get what they want: I’ll use my suffrage against against PP’s disgusting campaign and vote PSOE, though nothing is then going to change in our beloved village.

In the future elections, I should run for mayor in my own list but maybe a true artist must be 100% free and not involved directly in politics.

Question: What are Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, BAE Systems, Raytheon, General Dynamics, EADS, L-3 Communications, Thales and Halliburton?

Answer: They are the top 10 worldwide defense companies.

I've heard that the biggest businesses in the world are armament, (illegal) drugs and prostitution but I don't believe it. I know people who don't have a gun and don't smoke pot . I even have met somebody who doesn't like sex but I think everybody eats and almost everybody has to buy at least a part of their food. That's why my drawings have so much foodstuff.

We had in a small plastic container on a shelf next to some other art works few pieces of Felix Gonzalez-Torres’ Untitled (Public Opinion), which is a continually replenished (endless supply) 300kg spill of cellophane-wrapped liquorice rod candy. We got the candy some years ago from Guggenheim New York. I said to my wife that the container was full before but now it seemed half empty. She said that I was wrong but for some reason mentioned it to our cleaning lady. She confessed having eaten them when she had been hungry.

I stopped drinking, it was my doctor's order to my liver. My wife eats antidepressants and I always recommend her to take less them and drink more wine. I think wine makes you happy. Now I can't drink anymore wine, so maybe I have to begin to eat dopamine reuptake inhibitors.

In spite of the danger, I think I’m going to drink few glasses when I go to Mänttä in the beginning of June. Mänttä is a Finnish village where they do the most important annual exhibition in the country. The opening is at the same time with the Venice, so it’s like playing in the 3rd regional division but it will be fun because all my friends will be there - they are not famous biennial artists. And Jani, my best friend, is the curator of the show.

In Mänttä, I’m collaborating with my idol, the late Martin Kippenberger. They are doing our wall painting now and then we hang there some drawings. The text on the wall reads (in Finnish) Monument for Finland and Germany’s brotherhood in arms. Martin is a drunkard and I think he’ll make me drink a lot. But I’m not going to tell my wife and doctor.