5 - 29 May 2021
Despard Gallery is delighted to present a video highlight for the year, with the latest in our Artist Interview Series, featuring Tasmanian painter, craftsman, storyteller and furniture maker, Mathew Simms.
Storytelling is an intrinsic part of Mathew’s lifestyle, taking pride in learning new artisanal skills to fabricate artefacts that ‘reflect life’s pleasantries’. Listen to Mathew as he reflects on being an artist and his connection to nature through the traditions of craft and the hand made.
His carved wooden dolls are based on characters described in his folktales. Complete with hand sewn costumes, each doll provides a direct link to a time of authenticity and sustainable practices. Mathew’s paintings are an extension of these romantic narratives, regularly depicting wistful scenes of village folk tending to their farm animals.
Typically painted on found panels and finished with handmade frames, his soft colour pallet and gentle compositions echo the charm of French Impressionism, underpinned by the rusticity of folk art. The sincerity behind Mathew’s creative approach reflects a genuine connection to real objects and through his practice offers a sense of reassurance through human engagement and care.