2022 ~ Matt Van Asselt "Public Grounds"
“Public Ground”
Six-color Silkscreen Print on Stonehenge 250GSM
13”x20”
Edition of 100
2022
Bio:
Matthew Van Asselt lives and works in Pittsburgh, PA, where he co-founded Pullproof Studio, a community silkscreen studio. His work can be found in numerous private collections, as well as the collection of the RISD Museum in Providence, Rhode Island. He has attended residencies in Vancouver, Canada, and Grinnel, Iowa and has had work published by Fourth Estate. On top of his own work, Matthew works on collaborative editions for other artists which have been shown at museums internationally.
Statement and Process:
I am interested in the landscape and the way that we alter the landscape, and what it says about human ambition and culture. I am drawn to patterns, contrasts, small moments that are somehow emblematic of larger phenomena. I am also drawn to natural forms as well as constructed forms, in and of themselves. I like the idea of utopia. My cut and pasted reimaginations of our world share our utopian quest; occasionally misguided, often side tracked along the way.
My process almost always begins with traveling and taking photographs. And I usually don’t mean traveling in the grander sense, I mean driving out to the local strip malls, suburbs, the interstate. I’ve always been drawn to the idea of americana and the different ways “the american dream” is projected in the built environment. Monuments, parks, tourist destinations, and then just homes, the types of places people live, have always been compelling for me. The imagery in this print is from Millenium Park in Chicago, one of the most famous public urban parks in the country. The name “Public Ground” comes from a declaration in the 1830s as the city was being incorporated that the lakefront in the area of the park would forever be “public ground – A common to remain forever open, clear, and free of any buildings or other obstruction.”
I was particularly struck by the stark divide the park creates – on one side of the street a mass of skyscrapers and buildings of all eras, being held off from this extremely desirable land only by a foresighted agreement 200 years ago. I was also drawn to the architecture of the garden itself – how the patchwork of plants mimicked the city in its own way.
From the photographs I then make collages which become the basis for the prints. Typically, I don’t do too much planning, I’ll just plan out the first two or three colors and then see where the print takes me. But in this case, because the edition was so large, I made it a point to mix all my colors, proof all my overlays, and plan all my layers accordingly. All of my films are drawn on clear film with opaque oil-based markers, some which streak or crack and chip to create texture. Edits are made after proofing the print by scraping away or cutting out and taping new film down.
