"Painting, like music, has rhythm" : Noah Becker's Creativity Without Compromise

Noah Becker in the studio, 2009

By NOAH BECKER April 7, 2025

Dear readers:
One of my editors interviewed me. I hate those geeky "letter from the editor" sections in corporate art magazines. That's not what I do. We're bigger than many of the corporate art magazines but still about the scene. So this seemed like a great idea for an editor's update.

Here is the conversation, which should dispel a certain amount of mystery about me and what this magazine does currently - and who I am.

Interview:

Multidisciplinary artist and Whitehot Magazine founder Noah Becker has spent decades navigating the intertwined worlds of painting, jazz, and writing. In this candid conversation, Becker reflects on the intersections between visual and sonic improvisation, critiques the current art market, and shares what keeps him grounded in an increasingly commodified art world.

Your career spans both painting and jazz. How do you navigate these two creative disciplines, and in what ways do they influence each other?

Bebop was angular and abstract—more confrontational than earlier jazz—and I think that parallels the emergence of abstract expressionism. There’s definitely a shared tempo between music and painting. George Condo talked about that, and Kandinsky wrote about it too. But personally, I keep them separate. I’ve worked professionally as both a painter and musician for years, and that feels like a good balance.

 Artist (painter), saxophonist and Whitehot publisher Noah Becker while visiting with artist Trevor Guthrie in Zurich, 2024
 

Noah Becker in the studio with his mom and one of his double portraits.

Noah Becker, Figures in Green, 2025, 48 x 36, oil on canvas
 

With your work exhibited globally, including at institutions like the Vancouver Art Gallery, can you share a memorable experience from one of these exhibitions?

The Vancouver Art Gallery opening was huge—thousands of people. I’ve done many gallery shows, but a major museum opening has a different kind of intensity. That crowd was the highlight. May 2, 2025 -  I have a show opening at Gallery Merrick in Victoria BC. Openings are always great.

As a jazz saxophonist, how do you approach improvisation—and does that sense of spontaneity ever cross into your painting process?

That overlaps with the earlier question. Painting, like music, has rhythm. Someone once said music decorates time and painting decorates space—I think that’s accurate. There’s an intuitive flow in both. My friend, the great Westcoast Canadian artist Rande Cook and our other friend, the wonderful "Squirrealism" painter Carollyne Yardley, talk about nature a lot - I think the natural world is important to engage with.
 

An early Becker quartet at Hermann's Jazz Club in Victoria BC of George Colligan on piano, Noah Becker, tenor saxophone, Jodi Proznick upright bass and Jesse Cahill, drums.
 

How do you see the role of art criticism evolving in today’s art scene?

I sometimes question how “dynamic” the art scene really is. A lot of it feels like a used car lot—big galleries operating with commission-based salespeople. Last time I was in Chelsea, much of what I saw looked like bland, decorative art for lobbies. I’m not against selling—I sell my work—but I care about content. That tension between genuine art and market-driven spectacle is the real dynamic now. Whitehot has brought back the fun, cool, glamourous art world. None of the corporate nerd art publishing is cool anymore...
 

Artist Maurizio Cattelan, photographer Andres Serrano and Noah Becker at the Breeder, Athens Greece, 2024
 

Noah Beccker in the studio, 2024
 

You’ve written for Art in America, Interview Magazine, and more. How do you balance your roles as artist and writer?

There’s a big misconception that I’m a critic. I’m not. I’ve never written a traditional art review. I’m an artist who writes. I’ve helped launch a lot of new voices in art writing—probably more than anyone else. I even helped push terms like “art writing” and “art writers” into the mainstream. I’m interested in cultivating thoughtful dialogue, not in playing the role of a critic.

What inspired you to start Whitehot Magazine, and what does it add to the contemporary art conversation?

It started when I was going through a rough patch as a painter. I needed to open new doors. Think Warhol’s Interview or Gerhard Richter’s writings—they weren’t critics, but they published. That’s the tradition I follow. My book is coming out soon, by me and Mike Maizels, The Best Art in the World: 20 Years of Noah Becker’s Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art, with one of my paintings on the cover. 80 writers are featured including myself. It’s being published by Anthem Press—not self-published—which I think speaks to the significance of the work. Famous art critics such as Donald Kuspit, who writes for Whitehot, are featured in my book. I don't dislike criticism, but I respect it too much to do it myself, and I'm lucky enough to publish the best critics.

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In a digital age, how do you see the future of art publications, and how does Whitehot stay relevant?

Whitehot is about real people and real art—not trend-chasing. Some magazines just orbit around famous names, but I focus on substance. I don’t even track our web stats. I measure impact through real-world response: conversations, collaborations, what’s happening around me. That’s what matters.

Managing a multidisciplinary life is no small feat. What are some challenges you face in maintaining authenticity across painting, music, and writing?

I practice sax 14 hours a week, paint for about 24, and write or publish for another 15. I don’t have kids or a wife—no distractions. It’s just a creative life, and that life gives back. I’m finally at a point where I’m proud of what I’ve built, instead of always chasing the next thing.

What advice would you give to emerging artists and musicians building multifaceted careers?

I’m not trying to build a “multifaceted” career—it just happened from consistently doing the work. I paint, I show and sell the work, and I play music with top-level musicians. That’s it. Anytime someone buys a painting, an album, or reads something I’ve published—it’s still a miracle. I never take it for granted. WM

Scroll through more images below:

Noah Becker and Jeff Koons, June 2024, DESTE Foundation, Hydra Greece

Noah Becker and George Condo, June 2024, DESTE Foundation, Hydra Greece

Noah Becker and Cypriot mega-collector Dakis Joannou, June 2024, DESTE Foundation, Hydra Greece

 DESTE Foundation, Hydra Greece, 2024

 Noah Becker at the beach in Victoria BC, Canada

Noah Becker in Brooklyn, photo by Sally Davies for her book: "New Yorkers"

Noah Becker's recent album "Mode For Noah" available on streaming music. Click image above to listen on Apple Music.

Noah Becker in Manhattan, photo by Spencer Tunick

Noah Becker with art dealer/collector Gian Enzo Sperone in the Swiss Alps. Photo by artist Trevor Guthrie who hosted Becker in Switzerland.

Noah Becker (left) carrying a box of Whitehot Magazine issues at the Whitehot party in Miami, 2007.
Artist Trevor Guthrie (right)

Noah Becker Trio at Cafe Bohemia, Noah on sax, Lamy Istrefi Jr., drums, Perrin Grace, bass, New York, NY, photo by James Salomon

Noah in the studio