Matt Jukes is known for his vast, abstracted landscapes, which fuse memory with emotion, place with recollection, for a meditative and moving aesthetic. With a background in graphic design and print making, Jukes’s work is imbued with a dual sense of form and tactility. Here, we spend a day in the life of Matt Jukes, from being an early bird to home-cooked dinners.
MY ALARM GOES OFF…
To the dismay of those around me, I’m an early bird. I’m off for a run at 6am, with my favourite podcast keeping me company, I choose podcasts which get me thinking about the world in a different way such as Radiolab and 99% Invisible, they mix in with the quiet of the city and the big skies, to allow me to be my best creative thinking… all before breakfast.
HOW I STARTED LIFE AS AN ARTIST…
I’ve always made things, (sorry mum for all the disformed pottery) but as I left art school this creativity was channeled into a career in digital design. But I soon got tired of making things that were not tangible... So i took a course in printmaking, and was taken back by the control the master printmakers had over gesture & texture. One printmaker Frank Connelly showed me the mixture of art and science and I was hooked.
MY TYPICAL DAY…
I’m not sure if i have a typical day by my favourite days are the ones where after my run, I park myself in the corner of a tiny local cafe with my book and a chai tea for me to drift in and out of reading, thinking, daydreaming and people watching, The walk to my studio is where my ideas formulate and I put in a plan for the days work. When I arrive at the studio it’s time for more tea, and to put some music on, so that I can get to pondering the work from the previous day, before starting work. At the end of the day I take pictures of all of my works in progress, for me to share with my “artist council” to discuss and critique… which usually goes on into the evening.
"I saw my first plane in weeks and had to pause to watch it"
MY MOST MEMORABLE ARTISTIC MOMENT…
Claridges Hotel was my very first commission, and I have to admit I kept waiting for them to say that it was all one be massively elaborate joke.
THE WORST PART OF BEING AN ARTIST…
I have to say the worst part of being an artist is all the office administration, following up of email, sending invoices and trying to keep the social media feed full.
THE BEST PART OF BEING AN ARTIST…
Is the conversations I have with my fellow artists and collectors, who always inspire my thinking, pushing me in new interesting directions.
AFTER I CLOSE MY STUDIO DOOR AT THE END OF THE DAY…
At the end of the day I love to cook something delicious to unwind, and think about the work I have done, before either sitting down with my book and putting a record on. Or curling up on the sofa for some mindless TV.
IF I WASN’T AN ARTIST, I WOULD BE…
Maybe it’s the influence of reality TV, but if I wasn’t an artist I would love to be a baker in a small seaside town.
