(1) How long have you been making installations?
I have been making installations as an art form in itself since 1977.
(2) Why did you choose to make installations and not anything else?
I don't make installations exclucively.
(3) What do you think of your own works?
My installation works can best be described as ephemeral/temporal. Many of them are both installations and book(work)s.
(4) What do you think the difference is between your own work and other installations?
I don't know of many other works that are both installations and books. Buzz Spector's “Unpacking My Library” comes to mind, although it is a documentation of an installation.
(5) What do you think of the relationship of traditional artwork and installation?
The relationship of traditional artwork to installations is that while artworks may be installed, installations must.
(6) What is the size and material of an installation determined by?
The size and material of an installation is determined by the elements of the installation, the space in which it is to exist and the limits of the medium of its realization, as well as the original conception/inspiration.
(7) Could you mention the installation you consider to be the largest and the smallest one?
Of my own work, “A Thousand Words” (1991) is the largest (1000 pages, variable dimensions up to approximately 15X20 feet) and “MIW, 1984” (an experimental drawing using copper stencils, sand and spray paint) is probably the smallest at around 12" square. A digital version of “A thousand Words” may be viewed on the internet at http://spot.Colorado.EDU/~johnsooja/Home.html.
(8) Is there any object or idea that cannot be installed?
Probably not.
(9) How does environment affect the installation of the work?
It depends on the parameters of the work. If they are open to variation, the environment could be a significant factor. In some cases, the environment may be an integral structural feature of the work. In most cases, the environment has some affect on the life/experience/perception of the work. In others it is unimportant.
(10) Do you know any fact that restricts the possibilities of installation?
The political reality of a given situation might restrict the possibilities of an installation. I suppose the material considerations of a site may not meet the requirements of a given concept.
(11) Do you like making installation for order or at request?
Occasionally, yes.
(12) What do you think of preserving an installation?
Why not? I happen to make ephemeral/temporal installations, but if someone wanted to leave it around, I think that would be fine. Unless it can be reproduced as a multiple variation, it's probably going to fall apart eventually anyway.
(13) Can the value of an installation be estimated and how?
Again why not? Its ephemeral/temporal nature makes an installation valuable in terms of esthetics, not material qualities. However, its elements and documentation may be valued in monetary terms as “object d'art”.
(14) How does copyright apply to installations preserved only in documents?
(These are “leading” questions, aren't they?) Copyright might apply if the work is copyrighted. If not, it may apply if someone passes the work off as their own and derives monetary compensation from another's original work. This doesn't differ from conventional art forms that I can see.
(16) Your questions, if there is any, and your answers to them.
My question is: Would you rather drink muddy water or sleep in hollow log?