Your first 30minutes in the morning and  your last 30minutes in the evening?
i spend 30 minutes each morning trying to figure out what planet I am on and then I look out the window at the mcdonald’s across the street and I see the manhattan skyline in the distance and it all sinks in… last 30 min in the evening are spent in the bathtub, taking a piping hot bath, where I float and think and submerge myself underwater,, it’s pure bliss…then I try to write in my book, scribble down some thoughts

What keeps you awake at night?
Besides the loud sirens, car alarms, blaring music outside, and giant trucks careening down the street that sound like the space shuttle is taking off… wild thoughts about Life and the World, ideas for images bubbling in my brain, Time uncontrollable, what i should have done and should have said,

When and where was the last time you were happy?
every night i lay down to sleep with my boyfriend in our nest of warmth, every time i eat chocolate!

Which are the defining moments in your career, so far?
when a friend persuaded me to make a website in early 2003 and put my work out there for people to see… before I was making a whole bunch of stuff, but not really showing it to anybody except my friends and family…it’s opened a whole world of friends and fellow creative souls to talk to and share shit with… the best feeling is to get a crazy email from a stranger in another country… like the one I got from you, madlen! I;ve received emails from iceland, south africa, russia, australia, latin america…the world is so big and juicy! it’s amazing when people tell me they have been inspired by my creations.

Another moment was when I left my job at VH1, which, while it taught me many things, and allowed me to save up some much needed cash, it also sucked my soul and energy and fueled my longing for a different Life …more devoted to doing work that I believe in…

Your definition of art?
vomiting out what’s inside for all to see, putting your ideas out on humanity’s chopping block,, some will love you, some will hate you

What do you think about fashion and buying designers` goods?
funny you mention that, because a company in los angeles asked me to submit an image for a limited edition run of silk pajamas…i thought it was weird but also cool and different… a lot of people seem to be churning out interesting t-shirts,,,I just made a bunch of bush/ nine eleven ones for the hell of it,,,,a different way to get your stuff seen

You are a type of person who allows herself to improvise with different kinds of materials in various subjects. Do you have any expectations about the outcome or ‘it just happens’?
sometimes I have expectations, sometimes it just happens… most of the best stuff is crazy coincidence or something you never could have planned…smudges, accidental blobs of ink, two different mediums mixing to create the unexpected. Some of my images I have thought about for a long time before I actually materialize them, in others, the picture paints itself.

Your collages capture with the feeling that you let yourself get closer to the viewer, but not to observe it from distance?
I;ve always been a one-on-one kind of person… I enjoy the intimacy of spending time with one person as opposed to a large group- that seems to come out in my work, especially the books. My work usually has a lot of words in it, so oyu have to get up close to really see whats going on.

The collages, the little books which you make always seem to have a story behind them. But what is Linda Zacks` story?
i’ll make that book one day, and when I do, i’ll send you a copy

From your other interviews it appears that you just come across some objects and use them. But it is not like that, is it?
Well, it kind of is… when I walk around my neighborhood, there are tons of awesome gems in the trash, just waiting to be transformed into something…a lot of times I don’t have the means to get the stuff home [I don’t have a car], so when I am in a car with a friend, I usually yell for them to stop if I see something juicy, so we can haul it back home. My boyfriend once came home with a door he found in the trash, and it was the most wonderful present ever.

You work with different materials and means of expression, but still do you have a favorite one?
I definitely love to make books, they are so wonderful and undefined. Anything can be elaborated and made into a book, and it usually becomes a powerful, intimate object. It is also fascinating, because a book blurs the lines of image making- it combines, design, typography, photography, illustration, fine art, and becomes a blob of creative energy. It is a bite-sized documentary that speaks and screams and tells a story. A little potent gem!

How did you establish your name in such a flamboyant and commercialized environment?
I think that takes years and years to do…so I don’t think I am that established yet… but once people realize that you have a commitment to expression and evolving a unique and truthful voice, they start to take an interest…and they get excited about seeing fresh new work. So, I’d say keep making shit and keep putting it out there…if you take yourself seriously, people take you seriously

What have you learned from your work at VH1?
I learned a lot from working in a corporate environment and managing a staff of designers. It definitely had its ups&downs…I achieved a lot of stuff that I never thought I could do…such as redesigning and creating information achitectures for entire websites, working in an unbearably fast-paced environment, while dealing with horrible abusive bosses. I was swept up in the web boom, and we all learned the trade as we went along while trying to keep up with technology…we called it running-while-giving-birth

But most of all, I learned that the longer i worked there, the less creative I got, and it felt like designing in a pixel sweatshop. But new york city is an expensive place, and money doesn’t grow on trees. Now, I make my own hours, and try to expand my horizons as much as possible. It’s hard but much more rewarding.

Thank you, Linda. It is always a pleasure talking with you.
thaaannkkyyyouuuuuu   m!