Rubenstein Studio

ABOUT THE WORK

I am a visual artist working in traditional media such as oil paint, graphite, pastels, watercolor, India ink, and acrylic. I paint how it feels to inhabit my body. I consider art-making a necessary tool of adaptability, which helps me survive in the world as a disabled person. The practice of conceptualizing and then creating something that was once not there supports the production of new neural connections. These new neural connections help me repair my relationship with my body, which has previously internalized to hate itself from the rest of the world. It also supports me in conceiving futures in which all people have not only everything they need to survive but also thrive.

My works depict contorted, distorted, abstracted, and repeated portrayals of bodies, often my own. The bodies are rendered fragmented, fractured, ghost-like, and unfinished, or are reduced to lumpy flesh-like blobs of paint. Themes relating to survival, bodily catastrophe, cautious optimism, and the tension between control and surrender play out in my work through the use of layered compositions of bodily masses, highly saturated color palettes, and exaggerated scale. The act of incorporating joy and pleasure into these images through the use of vibrant color and playful texture is a necessary act in being able to imagine a future in which people of all body types are celebrated and have everything they need to flourish. I practice defying internalized narratives about disability and my own self-image by incorporating forms that resist perceiving injury or illness as unfavorable but rather celebrate and beautify the attributes that society generally regards as monstrous.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Madison Rubenstein (they/she) is a visual artist from Bloomington, MN. They work out of their art studio (207B) located in the California Building in Northeast Minneapolis. Rubenstein has exhibited their work in several galleries and public spaces throughout Minnesota, including Co-Exhibitions, Anderson Center, Gamut Gallery and Public Functionary. In 2013 Rubenstein earned their BFA in Drawing & Painting from Minneapolis College of Art and Design. They completed their first artist residency at Elsewhere Studios in Paonia, CO Fall of 2019. Rubenstein subsequently served on Elsewhere’s board of directors 2020-2024 and focused their tenure on increasing program accessibility. They received the 2023 Arts Midwest Artists with Disabilities Grant which funded their first solo-exhibition “Too Much”. Rubenstein studio is open for California Building’s open studio events. You can also book a private viewing of their studio by emailing mrubenstein.info@gmail.com

FINANCIAL SUPPORT

Patreon is the best way to offer me consistent and reliable support as a disabled small-business owner. Patreon subscribers receive unique stickers and/or prints in the mail every month that I make in small batches from my own Epson printer. This type of consistent and reliable financial support from my patrons helps me build financial consistency and security.

http://www.patreon.com/madisonrubenstein

$1 tier: “Vibes Only” For folks who want to follow my blog posts while supporting my business. No rewards in the mail.

$5 tier: “Sticker of the Month Club” access to my blog posts, along with receiving a special sticker in the mail every month.

$12 tier: “Sticker + Print of the Month Club” all the benefits of the $5 tier plus a 5 x 7 signed print in the mail every month.

$20 tier: “Just Along for the Ride” for those who do not want to receive rewards in the mail but wish to provided a higher monthly contribution.