Juggling multiple projects, and always on the move, Pratchaya Phinthong pursues research projects that have taken him to the farthest reaches of the globe—from harvesting wild berries in Sweden to trapping deadly tsetse flies in Zambia. I tracked down the elusive artist in Tokyo, where he was researching suzumushi (bell crickets), golf clubs, incandescent light bulbs, and Japanese bamboo for a new project. Taking my call from a busy shopping mall, he revealed that he never writes down his ideas. Instead, he lets them drift, sometimes for years, until one sticks and demands action.