HOARD MAGAZINE November 2005
MATTHEW LANGILLE
interview
HOARD: Hi, Matthew! How old are you?
MATTHEW: Twenty-Three.
HOARD: Do people call you 'Sir' yet?
MATTHEW: Still waiting for that, I look young. People generally say, "That's great, that way when you are forty you'll look thirty." So we'll see.
HOARD: Uh. So, did you like art school?
MATTHEW: Some things.
HOARD: Do you think it's a good idea to go to art school? Or is it a waste of time?
MATTHEW: For me, I suppose it helped me develop, but in retrospect, I feel like college is just a clever business. It felt like a priority, only because everyone around me was going. I never bonded with my teachers as much as I would have liked. Most of them don't even remember your name after a year. But when you leave Art School, you better hope you studied something lucrative, like Graphic Design, or Art Education. I wish there would have been a more extensive focus on what happens next, preparation for the "real world"...the world that doesn't sympathize, the world of consequences.
HOARD: How did you transition from being a student of art to becoming an artist in the outside world? Or maybe you still think of yourself as going through that transition?
MATTHEW: I'm definitely still adjusting to the grind, but since I've graduated I've been published in over fifteen magazines and have had a one-man show in NYC. I have been gratefully, overwhelmed by the response to my drawings and t-shirts, and that makes me feel like I'm in control of my art.
HOARD: Suddenly, I have an uncontrollable urge to own one of your limited edition t-shirts and prints! Where can I get one!
MATTHEW: At matthewlangille.com I hope to be represented by a gallery, and possibly some designer boutiques/coops carrying my shirts.
HOARD: How did you spend your morning, this morning?
MATTHEW: Woke up and got on NYFA looking for work and gallery representation, but for that you need slides and in my opinion slides never made sense, not to mention they are a hassle.
HOARD: Talk about the simplicity and innocence of your artwork.
MATTHEW: I think I use simplicity, or innocence, in a way that allows people to get closer to my work. I'm tired of heavy art.
HOARD: Your stuff kind'a reminds me a little of Keith Haring. Is that okay with you?
MATTHEW: It's flattering, he was brilliant. His artwork has a definitive style that belongs to him and always will and I feel the same about my work.
HOARD: What's your new series of drawings, 'Stitches' all about?
MATTHEW: 'Stitches' is an idea I've been developing for an upcoming show. The series consists of small drawings that started when I began thinking about children cutting up each other's toys. So I started drawing my images with what appears to be patches, or 'stitches'. This gave all the images a common look, and they were too cute to separate, making them a series. I can't help but imagine them as stuffed animals and I hope I can someday do that.
HOARD: Where are you currently living and working out of?
MATTHEW: Manhattan, New York City, living in a huge apartment building, close to the ground, the lower the less expensive... Ha! Ha!
HOARD: What's the best thing about making art?
MATTHEW: It makes me feel more productive, like I'm not just letting my life slip away, by acknowledging all of its parts. [end]
Matthew's website is: www.matthewlangille.com
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try these from the HOARD archive:
Lisa Alisa - Pieter Zandvliet - Scott Radke
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