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Matt Muirhead
Multimedia Artist
"I see people sewing masks and creating things of need for hospitals. I think most people don't realize how much art they consume on a daily basis."
What are you working on?
Well, I'm just getting rolling on a bunch of commissions I took earlier this year, just transplanted a load of tiger lillies from by the mailbox (they never bloomed, cos its all shady down there). The big daily thing I've started though is called the @bmorepuppets audio challenge. I'm accepting short audio messages from people (send to mattmuirhead@gmail.com ) and I lip sync puppets to the audio in little videos and then post it on the Instagram and the Facebook. its been really fun so far. I've completed three, I think, but there are a bunch I've got backlogged already.
Has your work shifted in response to the pandemic? How?
I'm trying to do some interactive stuff with the @bmorepuppets thing. I ordered a bunch of supplies and I'm getting my transparencies delivered instead of going out to pick them up. I may resort to doing more digital work which i can offer cheaper than actual paintings if things get difficult enough. Luckily, I had one of my busiest winters so I've got a small cushion of cash that'll hopefully get me through!
What is the role that art can play in helping us confront our new reality?
Oh, man, so many things! It gives us hope, distraction. I see people sewing masks and creating things of need for hospitals. I think most people don't realize how much art they consume on a daily basis. Films, and entertainment, memes, music, all these things are imperative right now!
On the whole, I feel lucky to be in the position I am. I’m a work-from-home person along with my wife, McKenzie. We have our little 10 month old, Tom, to keep things challenging and keep us on a schedule. Not too much has changed for me. I’m working out how to collaborate and with so many people having so much more time than they ever had, I’m finding lots of people who are interested in doing so.
See more of Matt's work here.