Jori Finkel is the arts reporter for the Los Angeles Times, covering the city’s artists, galleries and museums. Before taking the stage to moderate a discussion on street art and its effect on cities, she sat down for our “In The Green Room” Q&A.
Q. What do you wake up to in the mornings?
A. The sound of my 16-month-old baby.
Q. What surprises you the most about your life right now?
A. How full it is. I didn’t know life could contain this much work, this much family.
Q. What is the last habit you tried to kick?
A. I tend to eat chocolate after every meal, so I’m trying to reduce that to chocolate after dinner. Not after breakfast.
Q.What do you do to clear your mind?
A. Walk on the boardwalk and along the ocean in Santa Monica. We’re all lucky that way-there are very few days you can’t get outside and clear your mind with some fresh air.
Q. What do you wish you had the nerve to do?
A. Hang glide.
Q.Who is your favorite fictional character?
A. Ema Bovary–not because I want to be her but because she was so complex.
Q. What is your favorite cocktail?
A. I’m not a big drinker. But I go for vodka drinks when I drink.
Q. When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A. A scientist.
Q. If you could take only one more journey, where would you go?
A. I’ve only been to Morocco once and I really want to go back.
Q. What talent do you wish you had?
A. I’d like to be able to paint.
Q. What teacher or professor changed your life?
A. A number of teachers did.
Q. Who is the one person living or dead you would most like to meet for dinner?
A. That’s exactly why I’m a journalist. When you’re curious about things–I’m a nosy person by nature–you get to follow that curiosity. I’ve been able to meet a number of the people whose work I really like.
To read more about the panel Jori moderated, click here.
*Photo by Aaron Salcido.