Charles Esche: So, Lily van der Stokker.

John Waters: Yes. I am a huge fan of hers. You know when I first saw her work I was shocked. I was really shocked by her.

CE: You were shocked?

JW: Yeah, I was shocked. I still am. That's why I like it so much. The favourite quote I read all year was in the New Yorker. It had this article about Ileana Sonnabend and the giant collection she has collected over the years. They said 'How did you have the eye to do this'. She said 'Well I just bought what I hated'. It is a brilliant line because I know what she means - you just buy the things that at first make you say 'oh my god'. Lily has that power. I only have two drawings by her but very sophisticated art people get mad when they see them - some of them anyway - you know what I mean.

CE: What's interesting is that she's so over the top, but in such a decorative, 'nice' way.

JW: I had someone for dinner - I won't name her, she is a very sophisticated lady - and she got so mad. She said 'you know I don't think I can eat here'. I knew then I was right - Lily is a really great artist. I tried to buy one thing - it was like a stool, a little flat foot stool. It looks like you would wake up and somebody would have thrown it on your lawn. Which I really liked. And anyway, decorative seems to be almost an obscene word in art