It is no surprise that the storytelling series Maurizio Cattelan initiated doesn’t include “Goodnight Moon” or “The Tale of Peter Rabbit.” As an artist, Mr. Cattelan is known for skillfully subverting the expectations of his audience. Instead “Bedtime Stories,” a new digital offering from the New Museum, features cultural luminaries like David Byrne, Takashi Murakami and Elizabeth Peyton sharing selections from their favorite books, many of which are not standard nighttime fare for children or adults.
Mr. Byrne, for example, will read from “The Three Christs of Ypsilanti,” a case study by the social psychologist Milton Rokeach about an experiment he conducted on three patients who believed themselves to be Jesus Christ. “Preface to a Twenty Volume Suicide Note,” by Amiri Baraka, and “Gravity and Grace,” by Simone Weil, are among the atypical books that other participants chose.
“It would have been quite depressing if all the invited artists and contributors had chosen fairy tales and children stories,” Mr. Cattelan said by email. “We look to artists for their ability to show us the unexpected so I am thankful to all the participants for coming up with some genuinely weird stuff.”
As the project took shape, some of the contributors decided to write material of their own rather than pull from their libraries. In its debut installment, which was released on the museum’s website and social media channels on Thursday, the punk-rock icon Iggy Pop shares his memories of his beloved dog by reading a love letter he wrote for the deceased pet. In a later installment, Marilyn Minter, a painter and photographer, will recite a political limerick she wrote about President Trump.
While he is known for playful provocation, Mr. Cattelan was earnest about his hopes for the series: “I thought of this project really not as an artwork but simply as a way of being together with others in a moment of isolation.” Stories, he explained, can also be a welcome diversion from the barrage of images we’re often submitted to. “You could say all of my work is about the power of images and their seductiveness and their complexities. But sometimes it’s worth showing less and listening more.”
Other contributors to “Bedtime Stories” will include Jeff Koons, Camille Henrot, Raymond Pettibon and Maya Lin. A new segment will be posted daily.
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