Love Streams

Matthew Heller - Homage to Music

I sat down to coffee with Matthew Heller just days after encountering his show, “The Great,” in Santa Monica. Spending time with him in person was just as relaxing and inviting as viewing his work.

Our conversation moved easily from inspiration, influence, and instinct to the business of art. As a consultant, I’m naturally curious about the process behind any profession and Matthew, a career artist, was happy to share.

“My goal is that I put every ounce of myself as an artist into each piece.” Matthew explained after telling me a story about a gallery owner who’d given him questionable advice early in his career about increasing his marketability by making some pieces better than others.

Matthew enjoys the validation of the “four white walls” of a gallery, as is clear by his decade long resume of exhibitions. He also shared that he’s interested in showing in some of the most prestigious galleries when those opportunities arise. However, what’s most impressive to me about Matthew is what he’s done with his brand and his instincts to gain direct access to his audience. He gained the freedom to do what he wants with his art to get what he needs to support his goals in life; family and art.

Matthew Heller - #1 If Not For You

Matthew explained to me the traditional path of an artist. Go to graduate art school, become affiliated with a gallery and eventually gain funding from a gallery or third-party to continue doing art. I’m over simplifying of course, but the point is the funding comes from third parties and the art an artist creates is for these third-party project; not necessarily for the artists themselves. The intentions are different under these circumstances.

In Matthews case, he came up with a series called “Homage to Music.” These pieces are song lyrics painted on canvas. People loved them. Matthew’s theory was that these pieces would allow people to open up to his work more easily and allow him entry into their homes. He was right! Through one piece he generated “a ripple in the ocean,” setting the blogosphere on fire. He committed to 50 original pieces and sells them directly to collectors. This two-and-half-year project has allowed him time to work on other pieces of art that inspire him. He has created an entire body of work that is just Matthew’s point of view. He told me when he’s in the studio he doesn’t want to think about the business of art or what will sell.

Mattew Heller "The Great"

Matthew says, “The one thing about making art that I think is different is you can completely rely on yourself. As an artist, you can be home in your studio making art…making art should be the career, everything after that is the business that hopefully other people can do for you.”

After the “Homage to Music” series took off, the opportunities arose to show his alternate body of work and Matthew had an entirely different mindset. His direct connection with his audience over the past few years made him want to consider more carefully the space and it’s patrons because this new collection was made for him and the audience that gets him; not a specific gallery.

The way I see it, creating work unattached to a third-party made the work more honest to his brand allowing him to draw in his true audience. Not an audience already in place and predetermined by a third-party. Matthew’s first choice was to show in downtown LA in a show where monetary gain was not the primary goal. He liked the space and the people. Matthew explained that this was one of the best shows he did because it generated so many more opportunities with people truly interested in this new body of work.

This body of work is what ultimately landed in Santa Monica and where I ended up running into him. Matthew’s holistic perspective about his brand takes into account his audience and his personal goals in life. This makes his work true to who he is and more real to the viewer. There is no doubt that he will have continued success and he will continue to get what he needs by doing what he wants because his audience will find him; just like I did!