Milo Matthieu on Mixing Media and the Artistic Process
Brooklyn-based mixed media artist Milo Matthieu creates pieces that are raw and provocative, combining strong imagery with bold color and texture. After studying photography at university, Matthieu began experimenting with mixing different mediums, including photography, painting, and collage. Matthieu’s curiosity has led him to explore endless possibilities in image making and create a diverse and striking body of work.
Milk Gallery: When did you begin collaging?
Milo Matthieu: I studied photography in university. Throughout my time there I always felt that there was more to the story that I couldn't completely express in my photographs. What I was looking to capture was something less complicated, very simple. So for my thesis I started to experiment with mixing different mediums. Specifically at the time, painting and photography. And honestly it kind of all just rolled from there.
MG: How would you describe your work?
MM: Textured. When exploring I realized what was missing in my photographs was texture. That dimension which bring the piece to life. It’s all that simple.
MG: When viewing your work, themes of identity, sensuality, and race come to mind, where do you pull from for inspiration?
MM: Self worth, sexuality and racism are every day experiences. I mainly pull inspiration from my surroundings. We are exposed to a lot in this city, especially at a young age. My work is how I deal and make sense of it all. I feel as if we have so much say, but very little platform to genuinely express ourselves to the masses. So these days we are forced to create our own. Each painting and each collage I create, are my platforms.
MG: What is your process of making/workflow?
MM: Hard to say, each time is very different. My process is very experimental but well calculated. Each series I create, I push my self to a try a new technique or a specific process. But my collages are really a process of discovery for me.
MG: BECAUSE OF SOCIAL MEDIA, WE CONSUME SO MUCH IMAGERY EVERYDAY; DOES THIS AFFECT YOUR PROCESS IN ANY WAY?
MM: I don't mind social media. It doesn't really affect my process in anyway. I try to limit the overload of nonsense that comes with it, but it's cool. If anything, you can really sculpt it to be quite informational. I found a lot of amazing artists on the platform that inspire me.
MG: Do you work in any other mediums?
MM: I dabble with photography and short films. Photography for me is really just a tool to capture the people that surround me. I know I will appreciate it later on. It’s something to look back on and reminisce of how things used to be: precise. precious memories. That’s the beauty of photography.
MG: Who are some artists that you look at? What do you learn from them?
MM: George Condo for his Portraiture. Francis Bacon for his color and distortion of the human body. Basquiat for his raw and brilliant content. Rauschenberg for his texture.
MG: What would you like for people to take away from viewing your work?
MM: As an artist, the most important thing is that my work evokes a feeling of familiarity. A feeling independent from what the viewer believes I'm representing. People tend create their own story when viewing my work, which is beautiful. Not all of us will share the same experiences in life. I would rather the viewer’s first initial feeling of the work to be their own, and not have my influences tell them how to feel.
The impact that art can have on one person is fascinating.
MG: How do you see yourself evolving as an artist?
MM: I see myself collaborating with various artists from different mediums: musicians, fashion designers, film-makers. That’s the beauty in art for me, being able to collaborate with different minds to create masterpieces.
MG: What are some things that you would like to experiment with in the future?
MM: I definitely plan on experimenting with animation, like old school, frame-by-frame animation, whether it's a short film or a project for a musician. I'm curious a guy, I feel like there will be a lot that I will experiment with. At the moment, I’m having fun exploring.
To purchase Milo Matthieu’s work, visit the Milk Gallery Store here.
Follow Milo Matthieu on instagram: @milomatthieu
To see more of Milo Matthieu’s work, visit his website.
