San Francisco artist Andy Vogt creates sculptures using lath reclaimed from demolished buildings.
For San Francisco artist Andy Vogt, raw material is as close as the next demolition site. Holding a degree in intermedia, he now relies on wood lath, creating imagery on fabric and fantastic assemblages that leverage the natural variation in each piece to create the illusion of depth. “They are this strange byproduct of destruction,” Vogt explains, “but they maintain a lot of their original qualities that made them so good for their purpose and so beautiful.” We spoke with Vogt to learn of his process and more.
My morning routine consists of…
Drinking my huge mug of Assam tea outside on the porch and checking out which birds are flying around. Sometimes followed by drawing and/or hiking around the hills of my neighborhood.
How do you get your creative juices flowing?
Drawing first thing in the morning or as I’m falling asleep are prime times for me. I have my favorite mechanical pencil and my Clairefontaine paperback sketchbook with me all the time.
If you were given $20,000, how would you spend it?
A long trip throughout Japan would be high on my list of options. I’d also get the entire line of Festool machines.
What’s one destination you always tell your friends to add to their bucket list?
The Camera Obscura at Ocean Beach; it’s a dark camera-shaped building that is an optical projection of the landscape and ocean.
Tell us about a piece that turned out differently than you expected.
All my Light Oxidized shadow works on fabric are an unknown in advance. They develop and change colors in the sun right before my eyes and are always surprising.
Which three people, dead or alive, would you invite to a dinner party?
The PBS all stars: Bill Moyers, Michael Krasny and Gwen Ifill would be a good group. I imagine I could just sit back and listen to anything they started to pick apart.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
My dad always quotes a family friend who signed his letters, “Keep Going.” It sounds a little simple and cliche, but that’s what you have to do when developing ideas and artwork.
