The latest and largest in a series of visionary projects, Matt Muirhead’s quick work last weekend on this huge art bus demonstrates the powerful imagery, determination and joie de vivre that this prolific artist/activist has brought to Baltimore for more than five years now.
Muirhead painted the bus for mobile boutique owner Stacey Chambers, who is expanding her vintage clothing business on wheels, Go-Go’s Retread Threads.
Look for “Elsa”, the beautiful and functional art bus, at the downtown farmers’ market and other upcoming events around town.
Matt works out of his Hampden studio next to Jojo South Record Shop on the east end of The Avenue, where he paints and screen-prints everything from gallery-quality art work and old album covers to t-shirts and clothing, as well as creating handmade musical instruments and other artifacts.
After living in Japan, he came to Baltimore in 2006, and his work on occasion still reflects a Japanese aesthetic.
Muirhead is also a prolific video filmmaker, with more than a hundred videos and almost a million total views on his YouTube channel.
He recently created cover art for the forthcoming release of The Eye In The Dawn by Fractal Cat, and is also opening a new satellite shop in the basement of the spacious Avenue Antiques emporium on the south side of 36th Street, where he will offer a colorful and eclectic collection of his clothing and art works at reasonable prices, including instruments used in performance by his band, The Immortal Jellyfish.
Also look for Matt on Facebook, as he frequently posts pix of new art work and notices of upcoming events; he usually has at least one new exhibition each month at galleries and other venues around town, and welcomes studio visitors by appointment.
Muirhead’s aesthetic incorporates a wide range of images created using handmade silkscreens, and he has developed numerous painterly techniques to embellish, layer and enhance these images in surrealistic paintings that touch the viewer’s curiosity.
While his works may reflect a digital-age aesthetic, they are beautifully liquid and textural, and the images range from simple juxtapositions of symbolic images to roving freeform alien landscapes and figures that might appear in a sci-fi fantasy.
Matt’s wide range of cultural interests, and his continuous discipline in building a prolific studio output and an enthusiastic group of collectors, make him an inspiring and colorful figure in the Baltimore art world. Can’t wait to see what’s next.
