April 20, 2006
Ben Matthews.
Ben Matthews is an artist from Pittsburgh who spends his days painting signage for a local grocery store chain. It’s what he does in his off hours that’s truly amazing. His characters are based on imaginary bizarre inventions, old advertisements, sideshows, antique photographs and storybooks. The result is sometimes unsettling, but always mesmerizing. Matthews says that when he creates his art he tries to make the pieces look as though they’ve “already served their purpose” (i.e. worn). By doing so he creates a past for the posters and a history for us, the viewer, to unravel.
