Max Toth - Friend of the Week

Max's What — "I'm loving the Barr Hill Tomcat gin. Its my perfect spirit. It's a great gin made in Vermont, barrel aged for 12 months in new oak barrels. It's the beautiful baby of gin and whiskey, with all of the herbal notes of gin and the vanilla, caramel from the wood."

The painter Max Toth lives and works in New Haven but I met him at a dinner for a new art concept in San Francisco. We were seated next to each other, a little forlorn to be separated from the friends we came with, but in under ten minutes Max and I were thick as thieves--rolling with laughter and comparing notes on everything we love. We talked about art, philosophy, literature, and demolition derby driving. Then he showed me his paintings--epic scale, brilliant, mind blowing work. It is Max's many dimensions, talent, wit, and all around coolness that makes him the perfect choice for our first man friend of the week. Enjoy. — gp

Read mad Max's answers to our 11 Questions below.

maxtothweb

Friend Of The Week: 11 Questions

1. Nickname?  My name is Max, it's one syllable and uncommon enough that there are rarely other Max’s who clearly need to be separated. So, I’ve never been able to keep a nickname. Growing up in a larger family there were other M names so my underwear always was marked with an X for dividing laundry; I still sign things that way. But it’s never been anything I was called verbally. I have two headstrong friends that call me Millions. That’s probably the only name that’s lasted and only because of the tenacity of its callers.2. Where do you live?  Beautiful New Haven, CT. I make larger artwork engaging with the recreational activities of suburbia. New Haven gives me all the benefits of a city rich in history, still affordable square footage for art-making and boasts a close proximity to both rural/suburban settings for hands on research, including New York City. New Haven gets a bad rap for a long history of conflict. But it’s a culture made rich by what it’s gone through.maxweb23. What are you working on or how do you spend your days?  Traveling and making new work and filling the space between with reading, eating and watching movies during transit.4. What do you do for fun?  For the past five years I’ve been driving in demolition derbies. It’s incredible; it’s a beautiful meditation through impact. You don’t have time to worry about anything else in your life and when things get going, there is no space for worry of any kind. You just drive focusing on who you can hit next. Fireworks too, that initial spit of sparks when the fuse lights still gets my heart going with anticipation of the whistle of faint corkscrew sparks into the sky before the explosion of sound and color. I love the smell of the powder hanging in the air after. I love eating good food. And by good I mean delicious, not fancy. I'll eat out of the grimiest food truck, cart or back alley spot if it’s delicious and I'll watch nearly any movie. I’m excited for the release of Revenant, Star Wars and The Good Dinosaur, though I must admit, mostly for Revenant. And recently I’ve been loading up my iPad for travel with classics like The Man Who Would Be King and The Searchers. I’m still trying to understand what makes some classic films so good and why a certain director’s vision can be so well executed across seemingly different narratives.maxtothweb35. What do you wonder about?   I think I’m from one of the last generations that grew up getting lost in the woods. My friends started having those first generation Nintendo platforms and Commodore 64s and everything that came after with the Sega and PlayStation and Leisure Suit Larry and all that! I never was allowed to have a gaming system, so I was terrible at it. Still am. But we all went out and spent nights on adventures through the suburban woods outside of Boston. I think gaming is far more dominant now and the elderly man in me worries about the lack of hands-on living and exploring. But you can’t look back in history without some curmudgeon bemoaning the advance of some technology. So, realistically, I simply wonder what amazingness will come from the new skills people are learning. And I hope that I'll be able to keep up enough to enjoy it.6. If you could wake up with any superpower, what would it be?   I tend towards invincibility or healing, like Luke Cage or Wolverine. Having skin that would allow me to engage in any and all of my natural recklessness without any worry about harming myself. I love throwing myself into things now, water, and waves, off of cliffs or swings, I enjoy that momentary feeling of flight and often I like the rush of the impact. I can’t imagine how much fun it would be if I didn’t have to worry about any consequences. But the comic nerd in me has to give an honorable mention to the powers of Longshot, who essentially has the superpower of good luck or as I remember it the more the odds are stacked against him the higher his probability of succeeding. I’ve always loved him and would gladly be saddled with that power.7. What qualities do your favorite people have in common?   Drive, love, loyalty and a good sense of humor or maybe loyalty, love, a good sense of humor and drive, I am not sure of the order. I love surrounding myself with those people that are able to keep focus and pull off inspiring projects while still caring about the people that they keep around them and those they come into contact with along the way.8. What's the most awkward accidental text or email you've ever sent or received?   Oh man! Most of my awkward is intentional, but recently I was texting one of three brothers from this wonderful family. I was trying to get a rise out of him and motivate him to come out. So I was laying on the inappropriate thickly! But I couldn’t get him to respond or show up. It wasn’t until a week or two later that I was told that I somehow mixed up his number with his mother’s in my cellphone! But a great man comes from a great mother and she took the whole thing in stride. I was told she passed along my messages with out batting an eye.9. What is too serious to be joked about?   Literally nothing. I only edit out of respect for my audience (and I misjudge that regularly.). For me, there is absolutely nothing beyond being joked about.10. What is the most inspiring thing you've seen, watched, or read recently?   Seen: Tavares Strachan’s show at Anthony Meier in San Francisco. Tavares is a good friend and I’m constantly in awe of watching how his thought process manifests in his work. He has one of the most inquisitive minds I’ve had the good fortune of being around. Watched: I walked out of Interstellar feeling like I needed time to get my mind around what I just watched. I wish I could explain better, it wasn’t the physics; I didn’t feel overwhelmed or confused. There was something in the heroic nature of belief, determination, and following one's path that moved me deeply. Also, Locke, came out a year or so ago, it’s a little movie. Simply one actor, Tom Hardy, in a car for the entirety of the movie. The narrative unfolds through car phone calls. I’m a Hardy fan, but this movie is beautiful and gut wrenching and he gives a hell of a performance. He may make his fame being Max Rockatansky, Bane, and Tommy Conlon, and I do love what a great bad ass he plays. But I hope to see him keep taking on these roles that show how truly talented he is. Read: George Plimpton’s Fireworks: A History and Celebration. So good.11. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?   Pursuing the most exciting questions and adventures surrounded by friends and family, fingers in some good homemade food, and never far from laughter.

FriendsAmy Parker