WHY DO YOU LIKE AND COLLECT MATCHES?
I collect matchbooks because as a visual person, I honestly can only remember events and moments through visual triggers. The matchbooks are chapters of my life segmented in places I’ve been, people I’ve dated, moments I’ve shared. They also help me create a timeline in my life. A lot of the matchbooks I have are of places that have closed down in NYC so that I can recall around what time in my life I collected them. Plus, as an artist I realized early that matchbooks were becoming obsolete and collecting them made them much more special to me, a momentum with an emotional value.
WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE ONES AND WHY?
My favorite ones are the ones that remind me of the people I dated in my life. Even if they weren’t the greatest relationships, they remind me of how far and much I’ve grown from those people. So instead of having photos of memories and being upset, these matchbooks remind me of a relationship I’ve grown from and turn it into a positive memory instead. \r\nThe Highlander and Stephen Talkhouse: these two are from two different people I dated. One of those bars, The Highlander, closed down, his brother owned it. But I grew so much from that relationship. The other one in Amagansett, in The Hamptons, was a really fun date I went on and a favorite spot of ours. But the relationship ended badly, so at least I have this matchbook to remind me of some of the good moments that existed.
WHEN AND HOW DO YOU LIKE TO ENJOY YOUR MATCHES?
Since I don’t smoke cigarettes anymore, I can actually keep them and use them when the gas stove doesn’t work or when I need to light a candle. So now I get to keep most of them around. I do like using them but I’ll always keep at least one match in each one so I don’t find an excuse to throw them away.
