with Matt Chinian

Art Town is a podcast based in upstate New York, hosted by artist and educator Justin Baker. Each month, Baker engages in meaningful conversations with regional artists and artisans, exploring their work, creative processes, and the lives they lead. In this episode, I sit down with landscape painter Matt Chinian. We trace his path from sculpture to mythic figurative painting, through a long detour in carpentry, and finally to his current plein air practice—painting rapidly on site to capture the ever-changing light and atmosphere of the everyday world. Chinian describes his work as “essentially impressionism, with a practice that’s journalistic.” He finds meaning in the ordinary—light falling across forgotten buildings, overlooked corners of the landscape, and moments of visual tension that reveal deeper truths. His commitment to observation, speed, and presence gives his work a quiet urgency, rooted in both aesthetic and civic consciousness. Matt holds degrees from Bennington College and the University at Albany, and after 25 years as a full-time carpenter, returned to painting in 2010. He now works full-time as an artist in Cambridge, NY. Insightful, intelligent, and grounded in the art world’s evolving narrative, Art Town is where regional voices find resonance. To see more of Matt’s work: https://mattchinian.com/ Or follow him on Instagram: @mattchinian Theme music by Phantogram Interlude sound: table saw cutting plywood End credits by The Art Town Players