Michael Matthews "The Wetlands"

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Michael Matthews, “Baldy Band 2013-2016,” nd

acrylic, oil, and collage on canvas, 48" x 96”

We are pleased to announce our first exhibition of new paintings by Michael Matthews, The Wetlands series. Matthews has exhibited regularly in New York State, Alberta, and British Columbia. He has a Bachelor of Fine Art from the University of Calgary and he attended the Emma Lake Artist’s Workshops and the Triangle Artists Workshop in Pine Plain, NY.

From the dual aspects of painting – the medium and the support – arises a bewildering array of choices an artist must make to arrive at even, the beginning. These works come from a depth-sense of place and a commitment to painting.

"In 1981 I took a liking to the Columbia Valley. I was 27 and ready to put down some roots and build a home and a studio. There were two requirements: a southern exposure and a decent view, and I settled on a piece of property in Harrogate that looked down (up?) the valley to the south. During the following months while I was building, I kept noticing how interesting the wetlands in the valley were, with all their meandering channels and pools and reflections, and ever changing colours and textures and shapes in the vegetation. They were revealing their charms to me slowly. Then the first snow threw the whole scene into a vivid contrasting array of dark and light forms. When I finally got my studio going the image of the wetlands had snuck into my consciousness and I was eager to see where I could take it with paint and canvas. The subject seemed to demand a large scale and those first pictures were seminal in my approach to painting. Thirty five years later, I have painted many things, not always landscapes, but I have returned to the wetlands a number of times in my art. I think, in part, because of a gnawing dissatisfaction of not having quite got it right the last time. The wetlands are not to be tamed easily. In the present series, I'm trying once again to get it right; perhaps this time with a little more insight into how I see and think and maybe even art itself. Meanwhile, as always, the wetlands continue to be awesome."

Michael Matthews October 2016

Please join us on Saturday, October 22, 2016 from 1 - 4 pm for the opening of The Wetlands.