What he enjoys with collecting is the fact that it is something completely different from making music. Being Metallica’ s drummer requires to work with the other members of the band. In other words, it is a collective effort, though, collecting painting is a more solitary discipline. Ulrich said in an interview that: “[art] It’s my place, my sanctuary”. He definitely has a personal relationship with the paintings he owns and that is something he does not have with Metallica. However he doesn’t entirely separate what he is doing with the band from his passion for art: “ I’ve always been fascinated by what makes people create, trying to find a correlation between the ideas I subscribe to in art and what we create with music”. Art also becomes a source of inspiration to create songs.
He is rather obsessive in finding paintings. He doesn’t want second rate paintings but the best ones of artists he admires. That’s why his passion often requires to be a true business man because art is, of course, also an issue of money. Masterpieces are expensive...
In 2002, Ulrich sold five of his majors paintings including Basquiat's Profile 1. The following video taken from the Some King of Monster documentary shows how Ulrich is at ease with the buisness/art environment; an environment you don't expect to see the drummer of Metallica.
In 2002, Ulrich sold five of his majors paintings including Basquiat's Profile 1. The following video taken from the Some King of Monster documentary shows how Ulrich is at ease with the buisness/art environment; an environment you don't expect to see the drummer of Metallica.
