Interview with Matthew Monthei
Matthew Monthei, a purveyor of “testosterone fueled cross-stitch and other manly amusements,” took some time to contribute insights into his raunchily irreverent samplers. His works possess a sly wit that warrant a second glance, likely followed by a smirk or guffaw. If you want to see more of Matthew's works on Instagram and Etsy. Enjoy!
Please tell me a little bit about yourself. What was your trajectory to becoming an artist? How did you settle on your preferred medium(s)? What drew you to traditional craft practice as a medium of expression?
I've always been a bit of a crafty fellow from childhood. I constructed a lot of my toys from junk from the trash - my parents didn't even think that was weird. My dad is a wood working hobbyist and I grew up with my mom constantly knitting and cross stitching. Despite the latter, I didn't learn to knit until I was in my 30s, and upon discovering how terrible of a knitter I am my older sister suggested cross stitch. And I took to it faster than pretty much anything I've ever done. With cross stitch I was able to [mentally] combine crafts with retro technology – once I realized that designing cross stitch really is no different than 8-bit video game design everything just clicked. While my work doesn't look at all like that nor explore those themes, when it comes to designing it I take to graph paper the exact same way I did in my Intro to Computer Design in 7th grade.
Traditionally, there has been a scholarly divide between fine arts, the decorative arts and craft. How do you place yourself on this continuum? How do you define yourself as an artist, artisan, craftsperson, maker, etc.? Are these distinctions meaningful to you and your work or not?
I try not to put too much effort into defining because what I make can vary based on who it is for. My Etsy work has a definite specific target audience, and my gallery work is for a slightly different crowd. Sure there is a lot of cross over, but generally the former is a bit too simple or crass for the gallery folks, and the latter is not nearly as accessible to the handmade craft crowd. So I guess sometimes I introduce myself as an artist and sometimes I say that I'm just “that guy who makes funny stitches about boners.”
Who are your influences? Who are the other artists or individuals your work is in conversation with?
My earliest influences were Julie Jackson, who founded Subversive Cross Stitch, and Jamie Chalmers of MrXStitch. Julie's wonderfully naughty and snarky cross stitches spoke to my gutter-minded sense of humor. Jamie inspired me just by being the first dude cross stitcher I knew of – granted, there are a ton of others that I know now, but he was the first to really break the mold of what cross stitch can be for men.
I don't feel like my work is intentionally in conversation with anyone, but I hope that it speaks to the viewer in some way. Quite often I aim for “second glance” viewing – how sometimes a piece can be so unassuming that the viewer barely glances over it, but their eye is pulled back to it only to guffaw at having missed the most hilarious, unexpected, or inappropriate thing. I get great amusement out of that, which to me is worth exponentially more than someone defining my sh*t as Art.
Your work focuses strongly on queer interpretations of traditional domesticity, sexuality and gender. Was this always a facet of your work? How did it evolve? Have you found your work informed by or in tension with the traditional associations or history of your medium? What were the moments in your life that influenced this perspective?
Gender has always been an intentional focus, as nearly all my work focuses on masculinity, whether it is for sexual, humorous or self-deprecating reasons. I first got attention on Tumblr and Flickr, both of which have a massive gay presence, and being that I'm already a homo the queer interpretation just sorta came with the audience. I didn't aim to make a queer statement, but at this point there's really no way to separate what I do from what I am. And I don't want to. I know there has been heated discussion in the quilting community particularly regarding men “commandeering” a traditionally feminine craft and frankly I don't quite know what to do with that. Maybe that is ignorant of me, I dunno. I do what amuses me, and hopefully others will laugh along with me.
Craft is frequently associated and lauded for its strong emphasis on community, in terms of communal production/creative processes in domestic or studio environments, or generating community participation/action around a particular issue. Do you find this to be true with your process and work? What community do you envision as the audience for your work?
I do find that to be true. I owe a lot to the Tumblr community for encouraging me to make money from my silly little stitches that I posted online strictly for “likes.” And I owe a lot to Ellen Schinderman (curator of the annual Stitch Fetish show at Hive Gallery in Los Angeles) who encouraged me to think outside my “I'm just doing crafts” box. All the mad-talented artists who I have shown with have been incredible inspirations and supporters...it's been such a wonderfully active and personal community. No number of “likes” can quite equal that.
The last decade has brought significant societal and political change for the LGBTQ community with the advancements in marriage equality, but there are still important advancements to be made. Have you found your work addressing or evolving in light of these the social and political changes? What do you see as the new front-line for the LGBTQ community and do you intend to address it in your work?
I've been asked numerous times about why I don't turn my work to overtly address such things. And part of me feels an obligation or push to do so. The other part of me pushes back though. It's not that I don't have an opinion, and it's not that I can't share that opinion. At this time I'm not quite sure how to juxtapose my work with politics. It goes back to the “second glance” idea – if I address political or social social issues in my stitching it will be both understated and unexpected. I'm not an activist by nature, but I will support the hell outta you. And I will stitch rings around anyone who will oppose you.
Please tell me a little bit about yourself. What was your trajectory to becoming an artist? How did you settle on your preferred medium(s)? What drew you to traditional craft practice as a medium of expression?
I've always been a bit of a crafty fellow from childhood. I constructed a lot of my toys from junk from the trash - my parents didn't even think that was weird. My dad is a wood working hobbyist and I grew up with my mom constantly knitting and cross stitching. Despite the latter, I didn't learn to knit until I was in my 30s, and upon discovering how terrible of a knitter I am my older sister suggested cross stitch. And I took to it faster than pretty much anything I've ever done. With cross stitch I was able to [mentally] combine crafts with retro technology – once I realized that designing cross stitch really is no different than 8-bit video game design everything just clicked. While my work doesn't look at all like that nor explore those themes, when it comes to designing it I take to graph paper the exact same way I did in my Intro to Computer Design in 7th grade.
Traditionally, there has been a scholarly divide between fine arts, the decorative arts and craft. How do you place yourself on this continuum? How do you define yourself as an artist, artisan, craftsperson, maker, etc.? Are these distinctions meaningful to you and your work or not?
I try not to put too much effort into defining because what I make can vary based on who it is for. My Etsy work has a definite specific target audience, and my gallery work is for a slightly different crowd. Sure there is a lot of cross over, but generally the former is a bit too simple or crass for the gallery folks, and the latter is not nearly as accessible to the handmade craft crowd. So I guess sometimes I introduce myself as an artist and sometimes I say that I'm just “that guy who makes funny stitches about boners.”
Who are your influences? Who are the other artists or individuals your work is in conversation with?
My earliest influences were Julie Jackson, who founded Subversive Cross Stitch, and Jamie Chalmers of MrXStitch. Julie's wonderfully naughty and snarky cross stitches spoke to my gutter-minded sense of humor. Jamie inspired me just by being the first dude cross stitcher I knew of – granted, there are a ton of others that I know now, but he was the first to really break the mold of what cross stitch can be for men.
I don't feel like my work is intentionally in conversation with anyone, but I hope that it speaks to the viewer in some way. Quite often I aim for “second glance” viewing – how sometimes a piece can be so unassuming that the viewer barely glances over it, but their eye is pulled back to it only to guffaw at having missed the most hilarious, unexpected, or inappropriate thing. I get great amusement out of that, which to me is worth exponentially more than someone defining my sh*t as Art.
Your work focuses strongly on queer interpretations of traditional domesticity, sexuality and gender. Was this always a facet of your work? How did it evolve? Have you found your work informed by or in tension with the traditional associations or history of your medium? What were the moments in your life that influenced this perspective?
Gender has always been an intentional focus, as nearly all my work focuses on masculinity, whether it is for sexual, humorous or self-deprecating reasons. I first got attention on Tumblr and Flickr, both of which have a massive gay presence, and being that I'm already a homo the queer interpretation just sorta came with the audience. I didn't aim to make a queer statement, but at this point there's really no way to separate what I do from what I am. And I don't want to. I know there has been heated discussion in the quilting community particularly regarding men “commandeering” a traditionally feminine craft and frankly I don't quite know what to do with that. Maybe that is ignorant of me, I dunno. I do what amuses me, and hopefully others will laugh along with me.
Craft is frequently associated and lauded for its strong emphasis on community, in terms of communal production/creative processes in domestic or studio environments, or generating community participation/action around a particular issue. Do you find this to be true with your process and work? What community do you envision as the audience for your work?
I do find that to be true. I owe a lot to the Tumblr community for encouraging me to make money from my silly little stitches that I posted online strictly for “likes.” And I owe a lot to Ellen Schinderman (curator of the annual Stitch Fetish show at Hive Gallery in Los Angeles) who encouraged me to think outside my “I'm just doing crafts” box. All the mad-talented artists who I have shown with have been incredible inspirations and supporters...it's been such a wonderfully active and personal community. No number of “likes” can quite equal that.
The last decade has brought significant societal and political change for the LGBTQ community with the advancements in marriage equality, but there are still important advancements to be made. Have you found your work addressing or evolving in light of these the social and political changes? What do you see as the new front-line for the LGBTQ community and do you intend to address it in your work?
I've been asked numerous times about why I don't turn my work to overtly address such things. And part of me feels an obligation or push to do so. The other part of me pushes back though. It's not that I don't have an opinion, and it's not that I can't share that opinion. At this time I'm not quite sure how to juxtapose my work with politics. It goes back to the “second glance” idea – if I address political or social social issues in my stitching it will be both understated and unexpected. I'm not an activist by nature, but I will support the hell outta you. And I will stitch rings around anyone who will oppose you.