Alexandra Rubinstein
Whose work are you loving these days?
Amy Cutler, Aryo Toh Djojo, Katarina Riesing, Paul Gagner, Issy Wood, Matt Bollinger, Jennifer J Lee, Dominique Fung, Doron Langberg, Natalie Baxter
What is a typical day in the studio like for you?
I usually get in later than planned, feeling anxious about it. I change into my studio garb, grab a diet coke, turn on a podcast and get going. I have a running to do list of different projects I’m working on to keep me focused and I try to take stretch breaks regularly. Maybe even ice my arms. Life after 30 is rough.
Your practice in 5 #
#color
#humor
#anger
#dicktits
#blessed
What’s on your mind?
Too many things! Part of the reason I make lists is to remind myself that it’s written down and I don't have to think about anything other than what I’m working on at that moment. I’m currently working on several new series, trying new things technically and conceptually. One is painting with my menstrual blood, another is introducing landscape elements into my paintings, another is playing around with sculptural elements, another is painting on found objects, another is inserting my cat into the work and so on. Conceptually I’m delving into menses stigma and the notion of ‘crazy’. How menstruation is yet another example of our bodies being used against us, how society reveres youth and fertility yet stigmatizes the very process that defines those years biologically, how our periods are used to rationalize our behavior when it’s not socially compliant, how we refuse to address the suffering and the shame that actually make us crazy. I’m also always thinking about what’s going on in the news, masculinity, how a two gender system creates such a fragile sense of identity which leads to a lack of empathy and abuse, and how much everyone could benefit from therapy. .
What’s your dream project?
I’ve never thought about a dream project. If I want to make something, I make it. If it’s not within my means, it’s not within my means. It’s nice to work within some parameters. I guess I also try to keep my expectations low to avoid disappointment. Unlike in my personal life. My dream however is to have all the eyes on my work and to reach countless people. Are we all just working through the pain of not feeling seen as children?
Alexandra lives and works in New York City, NY.
October 2021
