Age: Vampire
Ethnicity: Croatian/German
Currently live: Los Angeles
Day job (what pays the bills): Poetry/Art/Fashion/Acting/Editing
Hobbies/Aspirations: Music/ Painting
Education/Study: Journalism
What was growing up like for you?
I grew up in Seattle, it was mellow, I did ballet when I was younger but that wasn’t till I moved to New York and my family moved back and forth a few times. I have/had a well traveled childhood and life. My mom and dad are both really interesting, they’ve always influenced me my parents are both very into art, my fathers a professor and did a lot of writing in Europe, my mom was a lawyer but then became a house body to take care of me.
Have you always been drawn to words and more specifically poetry?
Since a young age but the first time I really felt I was writing something important was at age 16, I wrote something called bumblebees.. and the end of the song/poem was simple ‘’and you might find a place to be a king and I a queen, we use to be like bumblebees; I wrote this listening to Yann Tiersen soundtrack… I got into a lot of obscure stuff early
I was very inspired by Neruda, Nabokov, Sylvia Plath, Hunter S. Thompson, Burroughs, Ginsberg but then also people like Rowland S. Howard, Leonard Cohen, lyrics were to me a big connection to poetry.
Did you undertake any “formal” study in writing and/or literature?
Journalism for two years but I never believed you had to follow rules to be a good writer. I’m like that’s for the editors only now everyone is kind of an editor first.
Alongside your words it’s very rare to not also have an image. How do you explain the connection between the image of yourself you share and the words that coincide?
I don’t know what people see but I see myself like a fucked up virgin mary symbol, like when Bauhaus wrote rose garden funeral of sores. And I also believe we can change and manipulate image so much that it is a distorted reality of many things that are inside of ourselves, many emotions, and in time maybe it changes and our faces fade in different shapes. Also I just think words are the ultimate extended dream and they have nothing to do with image, they just become their own thickness; Their own air. Every day we’re inspired by more than ourselves, the dreams of words are fantasy and reality.
Sexuality, feminine power, madness, lust and catharsis are all ongoing themes through your work. There is also a very primal element to what you write. How would you explain or describe your own work?
Weird, not with rules; It’s definitely different from most poetry imperfect but perfect. It is music without sound. Done out of all emotions we carry within ourselves.
Is your process of writing more organic or do you sit down and write with a piece in mind?
Usually it just comes and goes, I have my notebooks but I also, guilty.. Write
on my phone little notes here and there, and it always comes from all inspirations, friends, love of my life, music, movies, books, scents that remind us of certain moments.
How difficult have you found it to get recognition for your work and find outlets to submit and publish your work?
It’s not easy poetry is very big but also not very big, I’ve been doing it since myspace, and before.. but that was the first time I blogged things and posted my material. C-heads found me first and I started to work for them.
What does writing mean to you? For me it’s a personal bloodletting with less mess. Would you say it is a cathartic experience for you also?
Writing is like letting out a ghost you believe will haunt a few people if they are greedy enough to get into the words and conjure the demon. Like magick, it always feels like I lost a breath after something I write and it helps me with my own conscience.
Your work as been featured in various publications such as C-Heads Magazine, Nakid Magazine and BLEND Magazine. Are there any plans to publish your own book of work?
There is of course, I’ve always wanted to publish a book I think I want to wait a little, maybe I will self publish but I would really like to wait and have them find me, Robert Montgomery was my mentor a few years back and we sat at Bowery Hotel I was drinking a Bellini and he said “You’re the best poet in the states.’’ and I gave him a funny grin I remember and I said “No I’m not’’ and he said “Well what do you mean?’’ and I wasn’t trying to be cocky but I couldn’t help myself I said “I’m the best poet of our generation.’’ I have a lot of fans actually I get a lot of fan mail for my poems, it kinda shocks me sometimes I hardly make an effort to answer all of them, because I don’t know what to say often. I’m escaping pieces of reality every time I write, so I try not to talk about it too much. And maybe one day more people will understand what I am doing as much as the fans and will let me do it more and more, till the world fills with poetry and is made into beautiful music.
Model, artist, poet… You have no shortage of talents. What’s next for Vanessa Matic?
I’ve made a short film as well in Berlin “Animal You Hide’’ I act, I also like film and screenplays. I don’t know what’s quite next.. I love music, I’m not a great singer.. decent unique one. Maybe I do that it’s the most nearest connection to poetry, like Cohen writing A thousand Kisses Deep.
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| © Kenny Elkin |
