this Monday brings you the amazing talent of Santa Barbara, CA, artist ----> Michael Matheson. His work to me plays out like a collage of familiar shapes and objects that tug on current day trends...and at the same time harken back (did i really just use the word "harken"?!) to age old traditions; such as sign painting, basic building materials, stenciling and branding.
Check it:
Ancient Greeks
Cubic Zirconia
Diamond Field
Crystal System
Diamond Cutters
detail of Diamond Cutters
Carbon
Ruby + Sapphire
JET + Pearl
JHD: Hi Mikey.....thanks for being a part of my "Maker Mondays" on JHD blog. The works I am featuring are from a show in 2010 featured at The French Press in Santa Barbara. Was there a running "theme" or style for this show in particular or did you show whatever came out of your tools/hands?
MM: I created my own theme derived from my interest and passion from geology, specifically gems and their luster, precious metals, and precious ores. My interest in these objects laid primarily in their sentimental values, and their ability to heighten the human experience though nostalgia.
JHD: I'm obsessed with all the paintings featured here, but the Chanel 22 one is beyond. Can you tell me a bit more about it?
MM: The Chanel piece began with my obsession with the 1920's. The painting came about as I researched different objects and shapes that were relative to crystals. The painting is just an embellished mockery of fantasy inspired from my continual obsession with crystals and gemology. Crystals hold a connection to the after world or fantasy and I thought, "Why can't a Chanel bottle produce that same kind of relativity in a fantasy world"?
JHD: What/whom is inspiring you these days?
MM: Gems, captains, ironclads, tin types, toy cameras, type, USSR, exacto blades, xerox transfers, road trips, trains, 1867 sears catalogs, starting new paintings, post apocalyptic everything, taxidermy, prince buster, liquitex soft body jars,the clayton brothers, liner brushes, armature photography, printmaking, russian tattoos,1920's nautical paintings, islamic art, rock and minerals guide from golden press,easter pearl watson,chuck taylors, baltic birch ply.
JHD: Santa Barbara seems like it is taking a different approach to artists and forward thinking entrepreneurs these days. Do you feel this shift? Where do you see the art scene and world in SB going?
MM: I believe this shift in art is not only a local phenomenon but a national one, with the brooding and the birth of sites such as Etsy. It has given local artists the ability to sell world wide, and in a way that creates a fan base. Artists also, have been gifted with the ability to create and work for themselves 100%. I do feel this shift in my art world, it inspires me, and from time to time I create mini projects where the only place I can showcase them, is on the web. I have no real predictions of what to expect, just hopes that more people with creativeness have a voice in the world of art.
JHD: Any shows coming up?
MM: Yes I am in a group show that is in the works, there are four artists participating in the show; Michael Matheson, Jason Redwood, Chris Garcia, and Demetrius May. There is no set date for the show but it will be at the gallery Tropico De Nopal in Los Angeles.
JHD: Thanks, doll - you continue to amaze me every time I see one of your new works. I admire your talent and hope you never ever stop creating.
MM: Thank you so much, and its also great honor I think the world of you and your taste in design.all photos provided by the artist....contact this talent HERE.
soundtrack for this talent is somewhat of an inside joke:
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