Madi Weber (they/them) or Mix n Mad is a queer artist from the South who’s currently creating in Queens, NY. Their inner child’s imagination lives and breathes in the creation of bold, bright glass beads and the adornments they make with them. Madi uses colorful, often mismatched components to inspire play and challenge perfectionism in themself and the people who witness their designs. They have been flameworking for one year and have participated in two exhibitions for their work featuring their glass art, including Queerphoria: Volume 3, which took place in their home state of Tennessee. They are a multidisciplinary artist, including performance art and are always inspired by the creativity of New York’s Burlesque and Drag scene.
Madi Weber
they/them
Astoria, NY, USA
“Adornment has always been a sacred way to express my queerness. As a glass bead artist, I love the delicateness of each bead, the ways you can connect them with others and rearrange the colors to say something different. As a kid, I used to notice the similarly delicate and bright components, like earrings, connected to hooks at the fishing store with my dad. However, each lure packaged uniquely with their bright neons and tassels–no pairs. Recently, I noticed fishing lures again and the ways in which they are and have always been incredibly queer adornment to me. This work reflects this observation and connection.”
How does your work relate to the theme connection?
“My work relates to the theme connection in literal and figurative ways. This necklace connects me to my childhood and how I have always admired the ‘jewelry’ at the fishing store. This necklace holds special significance because it is connected to my dad and our relationship. When I was a child, some of the only quality time I spent with my dad (without my mom) was when he took my sister and I fishing at the lake in the back of our neighborhood. Outside of that, we didn’t talk much–he didn’t ask me many questions and so I didn’t share much with him. During those fishing outings, however, we shared quality time, laughing and being silly while he taught us how to fish. Those moments were when I felt most connected to my dad. We brought our kid-sized fishing poles and my dad packed his tackle box filled with hooks. In the past few years, my relationship with my dad has evolved and developed a true closeness that I never thought was possible as a child. This necklace explores the nature of connection and the ways in which connections can change physically, figuratively, and emotionally over time. This particular necklace features 11 lures which can be disconnected, rearranged, and worn as mix-and-match earrings, symbolizing the dynamic nature of our human relationships."
"Gone Fishing", Stainless steel, iron, repurposed headphones, Italian soft glass, 7" x 10", 2024
NYCJW24 @ UrbanGlass, Francely Flores
“Connection is at the center of my creative process. Connection is the preface of my creative inspiration and guides me to the ideas that I want to continue exploring. Often, I pursue creative ideas that ignite something new in me, but push me to reflect and connect with my own deeply personal feelings. Many times, I am drawn to an idea, or concept, like “fishing lures” and it isn't until I develop the art around a theme that I realize the true connections it has to myself or my past.”
What role does connection play in your creative process?
NYCJW24 @ UrbanGlass, Francely Flores
What connection(s) does your queerness make to the world around you?
"My queerness is what connects me and orients myself to the world around me. It connects me to my past: confusing memories of being attracted to girls but convincing myself I just admired them. Queerness connects me to my present and the ways I am exploring my own gender identity and sexuality, often through performance art. Queerness inspires my style and the range of ways I present myself to the world. Queerness connects me to community and serves as a link to so many of the different safe creative spaces I have found in New York City, including Queer Metalsmiths. Queerness connects me to the future and the ways queerness and queer art will continue to shape and meditate on our collective future. Queerness is a lens through which I observe and make sense of the world and therefore is reflected in my own artistic expression."
NYCJW24 @ UrbanGlass, Francely Flores
NYCJW24 @ UrbanGlass, Simon Leung
Anything else you would like to share about this work?
This can be an important part of the process, sourcing materials, or research.
“This necklace is inspired by the image of a cluttered rack of old fishing lures, each lure can be removed, rearranged, reconnected, and worn as an earring."
[queerphoria]v4 @ ECU Symposium
