…let’s have no talk of temperamental, self-absorbed and petulant babies. Being a good artist is the toughest job you could pick, and you have to be a little nuts to take it on. I love them all.

Charles Saatchi, the British advertising mogul turned hugely influential art collector, is releasing a book, and he’s contributed a great interview to the Guardian.

Like Hirst, Saatchi’s name is often mentioned in diatribes as a symbol of everything wrong with art and the market, but Saatchi’s interview reveals himself to be rather plainspoken and unpretentious about his projects, influence and intuition.

I especially enjoyed the last segment on artists, curators, dealers, collectors or critics, in which he both ruthlessly critiques shady characters and pleasantly praises talent and ethical standard-bearers. Everyone gets their dues.