My Soapbox: Matt Distel, Visionaries + Voices

Matt Distel’s West Side roots and long history in the Cincinnati art scene led to his latest post, as executive director of the non-profit Visionaries and Voices in Northside, where artists with disabilities receive space and support. The former associate curator at Contemporary Arts Center honed his skills at showcasing local artists well off the beaten track when he co-ran the DiLeia Contemporary Gallery/Cultural Machine Complex, which was located in an empty meatpacking plant in Camp Washington in the 1990s. He left the CAC to serve as director of the Hudson Valley Center of Contemporary Art in upstate New York. Distel, 39, started his latest job last September. Soapbox’s Evan Wallis talks to Distel about the Cincinnati art scene and his hopes for the future of V&V.

Soapbox: With your experience as a curator, why did you decide to take the director position at Visionary and Voices?

Matt Distel: I’ve always been a big fan of V&V. I’ve done several projects that intersected with the artists here. I actually ended up curating the first gallery show they had when they moved to Northside as an independent curator. So I’ve always had an affinity for the artists who come through V&V and I’ve long held that there is some really exceptional talent here. The founders of V&V had a real vision that involved the mainstream art world and that’s what I connected with when I saw this job. I think we can do a better job of promoting our artists, in a way that has no connection to disability.

SB: How has your curating experience prepared you for this job?

MD: Probably poorly, but I think the skill set I do bring is a knowledge of how the art world works outside of the studio. I feel like I can walk in and see how certain people might fit into a context out side of the studio. This person may be able to exist in the design world, or this artist might be able to contribute to the publishing world, but not necessarily a gallery. I’m hoping I can get to know all our artists and think about their work in expansive ways.

SB: Does this work compare at all to your previous work?

MD: Sometimes yes. Sometimes no. If we have 150 artists, we probably have 150 different types of art being made here. We have conceptual artists, video artists, outside, or folk art, and we even have much more traditional artists. We just had an artist create a project completely in Google Maps. There is certainly a need for me to find channels for all of the art in here and connect it to the art world.

SB: What can a place live V&V do for Cincinnati?

MD: It’s two-pronged, well, probably more than that, but two are easiest to speak to. One, that we provide to the immediate community we serve, adults with disabilities, and it’s a pretty good number. We’ve kind of leveled off at 150 artists. There are certainly places where they could go and work. We’re an organization that allows them to explore a side of their interest that doesn’t really happen if we’re not here. Programs like Goodwill and Easter Seals provide jobs, but we have a really artist-directed approach. We provide supplies, but only a little direction. In the art world, hopefully we are helping to expand the definition of what an artist is. We are trying to remove the barriers of an artist with disabilities or without. The really basic thing is that there is really great art to see. Cincinnati always is looking for that, and I’d like to see are artists in the more prominent spaces around town and have their work discussed outside of having a disability.

SB: What would you say is the best thing about the art community in Cincinnati?

MD: That there is always room to show your work if you have ambition. It can be tricky because there aren’t many collectors, so it’s hard to build a career as an artist. But it’s relatively easy to build your voice as an artist since there are so many exhibition spaces. If you can’t find one, space is so cheap, you could even open up your own.

SB: What would you say is the one thing Cincinnati could do to better its art scene?

MD: I think if people were more invested in owning art. Particularly with the prices we sell, people can afford it. We have a big range, but I think if people got more into owning art, which you can do at any income level, it would help so much. I don’t think we’ve done a good job here of growing the next generation of collectors. It provides support for the community.

SB: Where do you plan on helping V&V go in the near future?

MD: Collaboration with other organizations. Some arts-based, others might not be so arts-based. Utilizing the exhibition space here in Northside to explore our artists in an in-depth manner, maybe with solo or small-group shows, so you can really get a feel for the kind of work they create. Bring in artists from outside V&V to show their work in our context. Also, seeking opportunities regionally and nationally for the work made in Cincinnati to be seen.

Interview By Evan Wallis
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