Madison Rubenstein

Personal Pronouns

they/she

Describe what you do for work and how your experience with it has been.

I have been a self-employed visual artist and designer for my business, Rubenstein Studios LLC, since 2014. I create art about disabled pleasure, survival and liberation for all people. I sell original paintings, drawings and collages, along with archival prints, clothing, stickers and more.

How long ago did you graduate from MCAD?

10+ years

Where are you originally from and how did you hear about MCAD?

I was born in Los Angeles, CA and grew up in Bloomington, MN. I knew I wanted to study art during college, but my family and I just couldn’t afford it, even with student loans. I completed one year at Winona State University, dropped out, and took some time off. I eventually moved back home to attend community college to raise my GPA so that I could apply to Columbia in Chicago, IL, and hopefully qualify for a scholarship. My mom asked me to tour MCAD, hoping I could remain closer to home. I toured the campus and fell in love. After being awarded enough scholarship funds, I completed my Bachelor's degree in Drawing and Painting at MCAD.

What was your major and how did you choose it?

Drawing & Painting. Drawing was my first creative outlet and feels foundational to any medium I have explored.

Describe your internship(s).

I interned with Ed Charbonneau on a variety of mural painting projects, including the walls of the MCAD Cafeteria.

Best thing you ever found on the free shelf?

8mm projector

Your biggest takeaway from MCAD?

My time at MCAD helped me develop the work ethic and discipline I need to be a full-time artist. It also taught me to think critically about my work and have nuanced conversations with other artists, which inspires and feeds back into my work.

What inspires you/your work?

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.