Jeff Matsuno: New Direction

Pantages
2008 Mixed Media
in 36 x 30 x 3

Grafitti Wars
2008 Mixed Media
in 36 x 30 x 3

I recently decided to start a series of works depicting Los Angeles. The idea has crossed my mind many times but I never quite found a way "into" the subject matter, which happens to be my hometown. I took these photos a year ago and finally got around to making the work these past few months. The funny thing was I revisited Downtown L.A. this past weekend to search for more subjects and found that each of the three buildings I depicted have changed. The building in "Grafitti Wars" has been totally restored and the graffiti is long gone. The Pantages building was also without grafitti. The Broadway Arcade Building seems to be in the process of restoration and the written signage I depicted has been removed. This used to always happen to buildings I chose for subject matter in Venice, Italy as well. No sooner than I made a work than the buildings would be restored. I used to joke that I had to make my work before they restored everything. It's funny how my work becomes a kind of historical document- documenting an ephemeral patina, a moment in time when decay and, in some cases graffiti defines a monument and then is gone, while the monument remains.

Broadway Arcade Building

2008 Mixed Media

in 27 x 35 x 3

ARTIST'S STATEMENT

Genesis- "The wall is more beautiful..."

These works began while visiting the "Biennale" ( the biannual international art exhibit in Venice, Italy) with an architect friend. At one of the exhibits, located in a old, deconsecrated church, my friend commented, "I think the wall it's on is more beautiful than the artwork."

He was right. The wall held fantastic patterns of mold and mildew which seemed to emanate from behind the sculpture. I spent the rest of the day wandering Venice, searching for the abstract patterns of decay adorning the building of the ancient city. How could I capture that beauty artistically?

I began to experiment. I didn't want to do photography or traditional painting because they were both flat and even glossy, attributes antithetical to the textures I saw in the walls.

After a year or so of experimenting I moved back to Venice...

The Stroll and The Hunt

My paintings begin with a stroll around Venice. This is always very enjoyable. Venetians say Americans walk in fifth gear. From them I had to learn how to walk in first gear. At first it's almost uncomfortably slow. It's not about getting anywhere, it's about being where you are, enjoying both the conversation (if strolling in company) and the view.

Once I started working on the paintings my strolls became hunts. I was hunting for those passages in the walls that held visual interest- either textural, tonal or archaeological.

Once back in the studio the hunt continues, searching for compositional harmony, a frame within the frame of the printed photo.

Then comes the construction...

Craftsmanship

In high school I made (and still make) surfboards. In college I worked for a boatbuilder, lofting sailboat hulls and shaping rudders and keel plugs. After college I worked in many facets of construction- residential remodelling, furniture design and fabrication, even hand carving wood. I used to joke, "I was born to sand."

At the time my various occupations seemed a bit random but they all came together when I started making these paintings.

My paintings are very labor intensive and time consuming. I see no way around that. I believe craftsmanship will outlast trends and styles of art. It is a quality that resonates across centuries and diverse cultures. I hope it is evident in my art.

New Direction

Archive