Salomón Huerta started painting for a practical reason. “There were three sisters born before me, and I was the first boy. But once my brother and my little sister came along, I realized I needed to do something to get attention,” Huerta said. Below, Huerta, whose work has appeared at the Whitney Biennial, the Gagosian Gallery, and LACMA, answers our In The Green Room Q&A.

Q. Where would we find you at 10 a.m. on a typical Saturday?

A. I used to go to yoga but I hurt my wrist, so, probably in front of my computer.

Q. What do you wish you had the nerve to do?

A. I wish that I had gone to New York after graduating from art school.

Q. What music have you listened to today?

A. On Pandora, I typed in Massive Attack, then I get all the other songs that go along with it.

Q. When do you feel most creative?

A. When I’m in a relationship.

Q. Who is your favorite fictional character?

A. Neo from “The Matrix.“

Q. What is your favorite thing about Los Angeles?

A. Everything is nearby – the mountains, the beach, the desert – and you can drive there.

Q. When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A. A policeman.

Q. What profession would you like to practice in your next life?

A. I want to come back as a painting.

Q. Whose talent would you like to have?

A. The mixed martial arts fighters.

Q. What is your most prized material possession?

A. My juicer.

Q. Who is the one person living or dead you would most want to meet for dinner?

A. Francis Bacon.

To read about Huerta’s talk, click here.

*Photo by Aaron Salcido.