Matt Lambert is a British painter who works in oils on a variety of surfaces including canvas, board and even magazine cover. Sweeping loose marks combine with areas of fine detail, resulting in surfaces that are as rich and varied as his subject matter. His influences include African cultures, celebrity magazines, childhood memories, cinema, cultural symbols, urban landscapes, logos, superheroes and Star Wars.
Lambert’s work is predominantly driven by his own experiences. At 23 and using his spare time he set up a charity Pass It On Africa, (the charity behind the HEROES RUN TM), that has since built three educational facilities in Africa. This experience has had a huge influence on his work.
“The privilege of witnessing first hand both the day to day concerns of the third world and western cultures are one that I never take for granted. Excess and greed is present in both extremes but so is hope and kindness. Morality aside, the cultural disparities are huge and this is what drives my ideas. My work is not a charity campaign, it’s far too self indulgent to be that. It is much more a curious exploration into where we find fulfillment and the meeting of different value systems.”
Jester Jacques Art caught up with the artist to ask him a few questions….
1. How did you get involved with ‘Pass it on Africa’ ?
My best friend and I set up Pass It on Africa in 2003 straight out of Uni. A friend of ours who works with students in Africa told us about an Orphanage initiative in Nairobi, Kenya. The children there kept getting infections through their feet so we thought it would be cool to run a marathon and raise enough to buy 155 pairs of shoes. We dressed as Batman and Robin and although we enjoyed it were disappointed that everyone was not in costume. So, with a lot of favours from friends at Brighton council and mates with photocopiers, we set up the HEROES RUNTM, a superhero themed family fun run, in Brighton in 2005 hoping to continue to support the school. 10 years later, HEROES RUN has helped us build 3 school initiatives in Kenya, Ghana and the Gambia respectively and also raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for thirty other charities.
2. You stress the importance of various cultural experiences on your life. How has your work been affected by these experiences?
Setting up Pass It On Africa has allowed me to visit three African countries and spend time in some truly unique communities. The privilege of witnessing first hand both the day to day concerns of these communities and western cultures are one that I never take for granted. Excess and greed is present in both extremes but so is hope and kindness. Morality aside, the cultural disparities are huge and this is what drives my ideas. Consumerism is a consistent theme. My work is not a charity campaign, it’s far too self-indulgent to be that. It is much more a curious exploration into where we find fulfillment and the meeting of different value systems. When I graduated from Uni I considered myself a draftsman but certainly not an “ideas” man. I am now confident that I have something to say.
3. Your paintings have a cute and paste element to them. Do you start with collage before you make the painting?
I collect cut outs and scan them in and also take photos / use google image search for inspiration. I do quick mock ups in photoshop, just to see quickly if something will work. It allows me to get the main elements established and then I use this as reference for the paintings. The degree to which the final piece differs from the initial mock varies, but often original elements are covered up entirely, sanded back and worked into again with new characters / elements. In general I plan 50% of the painting and then react to the surface as I go along. I have found that the ones I have struggled with the most end up being my favourite!
4. A lot of painters only want to create paintings and not prints of their original works. How do you feel about making some of your paintings into prints?
I do not have a problem with reproducing my work as prints. It is a great way to get your work seen by a larger audience and gives more people the opportunity to hopefully enjoy it. I do understand why many artists don’t want to but I am a consequentialist when it comes to prints. They allow me to prosper professionally as an artist and therefore devote more time to it, thus improving my work year on year.
5. Who is your favorite artist at the moment? And do you have a motto that you keep coming back to?
I love Ian Francis’s work. Even when studying it close I still can’t tell how he puts his compositions together. I love that in paintings.
Like nearly every artist I know I have those days when I feel that if anyone looked at the work I was doing they would laugh and snigger at it, at me for thinking its any good. “Do the behavior and the feelings will follow” always stands me in good stead. Even if your feeling rubbish about a piece, put the hours in on it and trust that you’ll be kinder to yourself next time you come to look at it.
MATT LAMBERT’S ARTWORK IS AVAILABLE FOR SALE ON JESTER JACQUES’ ONLINE SHOP
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