matthew schlagbaum
matthewschlagbaum.com
matthew schlagbaum received his BFA in sculpture and extended media and his BA in psychology from the university of Ssouth florida. he received his MFA in fiber and material studies from the school of the art institute of chicago. he currently lives and works in chicago, IL, but when we caught up with him he was doing a month-long residency at the vermont studio center. we opted for a virtual studio visit, so a big thanks goes to casa duno for the photos of matt’s chicago studio. kylie gava: would you like to introduce yourself? matthew schlagbaum: i feel like this might be the hardest question you ask me. my name is matthew schlagbaum. i have a cat named harriet tubman that doesn’t like me very much. i was born in florida on the day the challenger space shuttle exploded. i drink way too many carbonated beverages for my own good. i grew up making crafts out of hot glue and repurposed materials with my mother. i’m not ashamed to admit that i eat at mcdonald’s multiple times a week. KG: how would a usual day in your studio go? MS: usually i roll in late morning or early afternoon. for some reason it seems impossible to get there any earlier than that, even if i get up really early with the intentions of doing so. i put on some music and basically get straight to work, sometimes with and sometimes without a plan. i don’t have internet access, which is often frustrating, but it also helps keep me off facebook or netflix. after five or six hours, i usually pack up and go home without cleaning up much of the mess i have made, a habit i need to break. KG: how often do you work in your studio? do you consider art making your job? MS: oh gosh, are you trying to make me look bad? honestly, i don’t get to the studio nearly as much as i feel like i should. obviously, i would love to consider art making my job, but for fiscal reasons that isn’t possible at the moment. i may not be producing objects at the rate that i’d prefer, but there are a lot of activities outside of object making that i consider part of my practice. even if i’m browsing tumblr, reading internet articles, or shopping at a dollar store, i am still technically working. i’m always thinking about my work and looking at things in the world that relate to it. it’s all visual research. since i’ve never been one to enjoy sketching, i’ve recently taken up digital collage as a type of drawing practice. it provides me with a risk free platform to play around with ideas and images, and i can do it from home in the evening after i get off work. KG: How does a project normally start for you? Do you start with an idea, sketch, or does it come from experimenting with materials? MS: i think i generally start with an idea that i almost never sketch out first. i’m not very attracted to the act of drawing, and thus am not terribly good at it. i have a base set of ideas and interests, which of course still evolve and change, that i tend to work from. sometimes i have a very specific idea about what i want and set out to make that happen, but i also often bring some found material or object into my studio in the hopes that it will spark some ideas. currently, i am participating in a residency at the vermont studio center, and before coming here i decided i wouldn’t bring materials or preconceived projects with me and see what happens. it has been a bit of a struggle since the small town of johnson doesn’t have my normal supply sources and arsenal of collected objects, but i think it’s challenged me in a good way. i’ve had to do a lot of rummaging and collecting, and i began looking for art supplies anywhere i could find them, including the