48 Mathieu Nozieres — The Message Comes Before Technique

Mathieu Nozieres: 0:00

We have to keep in mind that an image is made to be seen. So you're basically it's basically a dialogue with whoever is watching. So you have to be careful about what you're saying, through your image, we could, you know, blend different techniques and approaches to have something that is visually authentic. But does the message carried by this image? You know, is this message authentic? This happened at some point when I was doing a lot of battle scenes. You know, it was cool, but at some point I was like, I'm so Pacific myself, I hate violence, you know, I hate like conflict and all these kind of things. But I'm like, you know, if I die tomorrow, and people see my art. It's like, that's not really me. Even though it's visually impacting visually appealing, right? So that's the question I asked myself over the last month, as I told you, it's more about the content and what is your message, rather than a technique?

Laura Arango Baier: 0:57

Welcome to BoldBrush show where we believe that fortune favors the bold brush. My name is Laura Arango Baier, and I'm your host. For those of you who are new to the podcast. We are a podcast that covers art marketing techniques, and all sorts of business tips specifically to help artists learn to better sell their work. We're interviewing artists at all stages of their careers as well as others who are in careers tied to the art world in order to hear their advice and insights. On this episode, we sat down with Matthew nausea, a French oil painter based in the United States with a passion for creating complex narrative oil paintings reminiscent of the Paris Salon painters of the 19 century, we discussed the importance of listening to your inner voice, even when your teachers are telling you the opposite. Why branding can be useful so long as you're still true to your authentic voice, how to learn illustration techniques to create narrative paintings that look realistic, and why what your art says is just as important, if not more so than only creating a beautiful painting. Finally, we talked about his current group exhibition at Haven Gallery, where both his painting and his wife's painting are hanging side by side for a show called duality, his upcoming group exhibition with beautiful bizarre magazine happening later this year. And finally, he tells us about his new prints coming out soon. So welcome, Matthew to the BoldBrush show. I'm so excited to have you on because you are God, you're like, I imagine if Jean-Léon Gérôme were alive today. It would be you

Mathieu Nozieres: 2:28

really, yeah, there's still some some ways--some some miles to go. But thank you very much I appreciate

Laura Arango Baier: 2:36

it's something wonderful to aspire to, though because your work for you know, our listeners, obviously, you're going to tell us a little bit more about you. But your work is extremely complex, and also very detailed, very narrative. Which is why it reminds me so much of that, you know, time period of academic painting where it's very historic, and it's so friggin cool. Plus,

Mathieu Nozieres: 2:57

yeah, thank you. Yeah, 19th century, it's like a peak for oil painting, you know, this, these Salon paintings, even though they didn't leave a big mark in art history, for most of them, you know, you have Gérôme, of course and everything. But most of them were very, very technical. But they didn't leave, you know, such a crazy mark because they like Delacroix did, for instance, or other people. But when you're when you like technique, these works, they are like the pinncale, I don't know how to say the top top top. Right. Yeah. So I definitely take a lot of inspiration from there. And also try to balance it artistically to also try to add or say not the only too much into technique, but also into creativity and so on. So it's a it's a balance to be found. But when I need to learn about technique, I'm digging into the 19th century and these guy's like you said, like stay home and all the crew. Yeah.

Laura Arango Baier: 3:58

Yeah, yeah. And we can dive into more about technique and why? You know, that balance is so important. After you tell us a little bit about you what you do who you are

Mathieu Nozieres: 4:10

Oh, yeah, so my name is Mathieu, I come from France. You actually spelled my name right? Which is nice, because it's Mathieu in French. And my last name is Nozieres, which is absolutely impossible to pronounce for the Americans. I even thought about like changing it because they were nobody can pronounce it so Mathieu Nozieres, I was born in France just moved to the States. Permanently. paperwork is done. It's it's you know, all this thing is over. So I'm ready to start a new chapter here. And while I do since I was a kid, I discovered painting the painting like--the type of painting I'm doing now I discovered it really late. I started painting when I was 21. So what I was doing since a kid but I was doing comic books. My dream was to be a comic book artist. At 11 years old when I was a child, I was like copying Snoopy characters. But yeah, I'm making my own stories with them. And I remember being in a living room. And I was in Santa Barbara back then, because my dad came to work for one year in the States, so we all moved here. And I was That's why I happen to be Snoopy and not I don't know, the character from friends, right. And I remember being a small kid in the living room drawing. And there was like a nice sunshine, little by the window. Everything was so peaceful. And I was drawing and I was like, This is what I want to do. It's so nice. It makes me so happy. So I was really like, into comics, comics comics since a kid. And the funny thing is, I didn't like painting at all. It's not like, whatever. It's really, I was like, I hate painting. I just wanted to do comics. And it was when I was obliged to go to the museum when I was in high school. Because I was into an artistic section. I was always like, why should we go to the museum looking at this old paintings? It's, you know, it's the dead people painting other dead people what the hell and and when I did an Erasmus exchange in Romania, later on, when I was at university, I arrived there, and they didn't have a comic section, they only have had painting. So I started painting. And I was like, wow, this is so cool. Because the more I was digging into drawing, the more I was attracted by technique. And the more you're attracted by technique, the the closer you get at some point to oil painting, right? So it came at the right timing. And I just loved it. And since then, there were no way back. It just quit everything. No more comics, no more anything more music, and just like oil painting, oil painting, oil painting. And today, right now, I'm trying to search a bridge between these comics from the, you know, from the past. And oil painting. So yeah, I started drawing comics painting, and now trying to blend both Yeah, that's the path.

Laura Arango Baier: 7:00

Yes. And I, I will say you're doing it successfully. Because your work, I love that it has that last sickle sort of antique, or antiquity, sort of like touch, especially in that painting that you made, where I can just imagine like a picture like this white horse, and there's like, all of this crazy composition going on around that, if I remember correctly, can be going crazy. But I love that, you know, you blend that with, you know, the the sort of like imaginative side of comics. So you have your dragons and you have all of these crazy elements that even I think the academics would have been like, wow. Because actually, now that I remember there is an academic painter who did have a dragon and one of his paintings Leeton Yeah, Lord Frederick Leeton yet a really cool dragon and one of his washes check it Oh, yeah, you would love that dragon because it has like this cool flame coming out of his mouth. And it has this right red eye. And it's got he was really great at also having likes. Yeah, so 100% recommend?

Unknown: 8:11

Yeah, thank you. Yeah, the image part is very important to me the narrative because I come from a comic book background. So at first, I was also attracted to tell stories, right. And when I discovered painting in Romania, I started with contemporary art, like, I was into the figurative movement, but inside contemporary art with the contemporary thinking, because that's what they were teaching me at school. So they, I don't want to cast them any stone, but they somehow tried to discourage me to be narrative, because it was too close to illustration. And contemporary art, you know, it's, it has its own system, let's say, and it's much more conceptual. So they were trying to drag it towards that conceptual side. And I was split in my mind, because have always been about imagination and narratives. And at the same time, I was learning it was fresh student discovering, oil painting. So I was like, I should believe them. Because, you know, they're the pros. So I should have faith in what they say. And I've been a little harsh with them for a long time afterward, because I felt they made me lose time because they took me off my path. But at the same time, it made me discover something. Also the that I wouldn't have explored otherwise. So narration, as you said, is very important to me. And that's why I love narrative paintings. And all the American painters, which who are also at the frontier with the illustration, like, you know, what's his name? Dean Cornwell? You know, Leyendecker all these kind of people. They inspire me a lot because I feel they found a nice blend between being an illustrator and being an oil painter, so that's really cool.

Laura Arango Baier: 10:07

Yeah, yeah. And you know, what I, what I also love about your work is the fact that it blends that illustration so nicely that it doesn't feel like illustration. Most of the time, when I look at your work, I'm like, Oh, this is just like what, you know, the academics are doing, you know, for the for the salon. But at the same time, you know, it is illustration, because, you know, and I love to make this comparison, whenever I talk to people about illustration is that if you look at any of the paintings by the old masters, even, you know, in the Renaissance and antiquity, no one looks like that. Absolutely, no one looks like that. The paintings that they make, it's like they, they transform reality in a way that makes it, you know, it brings it to its essence. But then at the same time, it's recognizable. Right? Which, at its core, that's illustration, right? So how do you recommend, right? Because there are so many people out there who, you know, they love realism that maybe they're on that path of, they're torn between like, oh, I want to do realism, but I love narrative, how do you recommend that maybe they learn illustration, in order to lead them more towards narrative?

Unknown: 11:22

Ye ah, so the thing, I think, in my opinion, is to work the fundamentals and structure when people are into realism, like hardcore realism, they will tend to copy the reality with the tendency to fall in the trap of copying reality without really understanding it. Right. So I think if you work structure, and you're you're also passionate about understanding how things work, you know, in from the inside, meaning, you know, structure, anatomy, all these kind of things, then you will, it will be way easier later on when you want to do illustration, because illustration, there's a big part of inventing what you-- what you do, you cannot really have a model of like a dragon with like gladiators and a wall Colosseum, right. So this is gonna happen a lot with your knowledge. But because you want your painting to look believable, because you like realism, like I do, then you also need observational skills. So basically work the fundamentals work, you know how to observe. And then when you create, you just merge both a little bit of knowledge, a little bit of observation. And then you will have like, let's say realistic illustration.

Laura Arango Baier: 12:49

So that would mean like, the person would have to, for example, apply that knowledge, but also attempt, for example, to draw from imagination completely, like no reference, or

Mathieu Nozieres: 13:01

Yeah, exactly. Or you can build your own reference, for instance, you could you could, like, sometimes I asked my, when I was back in France, at some point, I asked my little brother, I have a painting named "Dust" with, like, Arabic warriors fighting in the desert, and you have like, you know, warrior with like, wings, winged horse and everything. And this was painted in France, when I was in my hometown, and my little brother was posing for me with flight, you know, a frying pan for the shield a broom for the right. And once you have this photo, you just transpose it to your painting. And because you, you have your knowledge, you change all the temperatures, you change the color, if needed. you rearrange, repeat the position to make it more dynamic. So that's where knowledge and observation blends. But if you don't have the knowledge, and you simply copy what you see, then how to paint if there is nothing to be seen is just in your mind, then you're stuck. So yeah, yeah, that's very important to me. Yeah. And it comes from a comic book background, when in comics, you mostly work from imagination. So this really helped.

Laura Arango Baier: 14:08

Yeah, yeah. And I think that's one of the most understated things that anyone should do. Right? I think, you know, because I went to two academic schools. Um, it's, it's always just observe, observe, observe, you know, if you actually in one school, it was like, even if you see it, don't put it if it doesn't make the painting better. And then in the other school was like, No, you put everything it was, it's a huge clash of, like, okay, but I don't want to put this one thing in it because it's ugly. And, you know, I, I understand the value, right? of, okay, you have to learn how to do it in order to undo it, right in order to get that fundamental and then, you know, apply it in a way that makes sense. You know, like if your model shifts, okay, that's easy to fix. If you know anatomy because you know, what's supposed to be there and what's not supposed to be there. Right? So I think, you know, I agree with you about, you know, learning the fundamentals, following it up with you know, that either transposing from pictures, which of course, that's something else that's a bit of a hot topic with certain academic groups or like anti pictures only from reality. Which I don't get Yeah. Completely, especially if you're already trained, right? Actually, how do you feel about using pictures? I'm sure you use them. But have you ever had any backlash about it?

Mathieu Nozieres: 15:35

Yeah, so I have kind of a specific process. In the end, I believe it is where the final goal is to make a picture, right? So what is important is for your final picture to look good. If you want to paint on the from reality, and it looks good, then fine, if you want to paint on it from reality, but it looks like shit, then not fine. Right? So I think it's a matter of finding your process to make the final image look good. So yeah, I because I went, I visited many different professional fields and communities, because I started in comics, then contemporary art, then I switched to fine art, then, um, now I'm going towards like, illustration. I've seen the different mindsets, you know, and how everyone is like, you know, how to say, targeting the other, like, trying to find and critique everything. And I feel that in the end, the most important and what we're all concerned with is making good image. So you have like, the old fine artists, like not, not all, but like the very traditional fine artists where like, if you don't paint from reality, then it No, you're not like, it's not, it's not hardcore enough, it's not authentic, then you have contemporary art, which is like, if you do something, where technique is the goal or is important, then it's worthless. Then you have the comic books were like all these people, they're just like nosy, they don't understand anything, right? So it's like a big, you know, everyone's talking. And again, just focus on the final image. And that's it. So that's what I did at some point. And I said, How can I make my image look good? So I was, as I told you, using both imagination and people posing when I needed so I took these people in photo and just repainted it. At some point, I felt like sometimes it's becomes difficult when you have like horses and everything, how do I do this? So I started to do like, you know, photo bash on Photoshop, trying to find many pictures, you know, crop them, you do like a collage to have like a roadmap. But the same I was sitting it's, it's a little I don't know how to say in English, you're trying to glue parts and just laborious. Then I said, Okay, I gonna do my little sculptures. So I took like sculpture class at the fine art school in of my city, you know, evening class with all the like the retired people. And I started to do the little sculptures and it was too long, right? And I was feeling that I'm putting so much effort into sculpture while um, my final goal once again is to make a fine an oil painting. So at some point, so like, I was exploring so many things that I ended up like with Play Mobiles, setting up composition with Play Mobiles, because it was faster than sculpture, I had the direction of lighting. So I was doing my little maquettes, you know, are buying like toy horses in shops. Yeah, all these kind of things. And at some point, I was stuck with a painting on a deadline. And I was having problem to go further because I tried everything. My little brother posing as the Dust painting I told you about Play Mobiles bla bla bla bla bla and there was something wrong and I couldn't spot what so I booked a mentorship out from the blue with a guy named Devin Korwin who's really really good at teaching color theory and everything probably the best right now and and he's into CG art. Yeah, digital, right. And he told me, man, have you ever heard about 3d? And um, like, 3d? No, he said, like, you could, you know, it could it could help you a lot and it just dropped the information. And I was so stressed with the timing. Any solution, you know, will be taken instantly. So the mentorship finished I just Googled Blender, downloaded Blender, the software and then I spent like one week and a half non stop on Blender and ZBrush combined. And you know, sculpting digitally using Blender, but I was discovering the software from scratch. And I worked so much on the software that I ended up at the doctor with like a motion sickness.

Laura Arango Baier: 20:10

Yeah, well, the shifting, oh my god, yeah,

Mathieu Nozieres: 20:13

because I worked like like, all night and days because I was like, I'm on deadline, I need to finish this painting. And when I discovered 3d, it's basically the thing that solved all my problems. So I got like, fascinated by the thing. I was like, the possibilities of this are endless. So I just grinded, like, basically did the thing. And at the end, I couldn't walk straight. I was like falling. And my mom sent me to the doctor, she was like, just go, you know, good check what's wrong, because I couldn't, everything was like, I don't know, moving and arrived at the doctor. And he said, like, man, you, you have a motion sickness, what happened. And I said, I didn't move off my chair. But I was just like, rotating everything. And because I was starting, you know, I was like a bit of a bit clumsy. So everything was like woo woo woo. But long story short, I discovered 3d. And this helped me a lot, because now I will build my scene in 3d. To have like a decent sense of lighting. At first, I would even do the textures and everything. But at some point, I was like, I'm the same with sculpture and becoming like a CG artist, and not anymore. No painter. So just cut all these things. Just use, you know, just the lighting on some untextured assets. And from this, I will paint using colors from other references, like from life from sketches, what I could do is if I'm doing a scene, you know, at a certain point of the day, I would go out sketch at this hour today. So I have the color notes, use the 3d for the structure for the lighting. And then I will do a very kind of finish finished sketch. So I have the shapes, you know, right? Because if I'm using 3d as a final, how to say, model, it's a little stiff and everything. So I redrew everything with a sketch to have it like, nice, flowing, nice and flowing. Then I lay on the color notes. And the other that's basically my process, right--Right at the moment.

Laura Arango Baier: 22:18

frickin awesome. Because, I mean, I had already heard of Blender, and I had friends in high school who used to mess around with like, zbrush and stuff. Yeah, I always thought it was awesome. And you know what, it's, it would be a really awesome tool for you know, any artists out there who maybe can't go to a specific place and time in the past maybe or even in like, you know, maybe an image from their imagination just doesn't exist, right? It's so much easier to, you know, build it on there. Because then, of course, you have to deal with the issues that imagination versus reality does, right? Where like, you picture something working a certain way, and it just physically cannot work. So that's a really awesome way of, you know, working it out. And really getting even like I because I've seen the program and I've seen how it works. I love that you can choose like, you know, if you want the light to be high up or if you want it to be lowered down like, totally underneath. It's really awesome. Oh my god, Jean. Yeah, that's it.

Mathieu Nozieres: 23:20

Yeah, thanks, Devin, who mentioned this! You know, when you watch James Gurney, for instance, he's doing a lot of miniatures for setting up his composition, which is awesome. But if you want to earn time, you can basically do the same on the computer. And for people who would be like, Yeah, but you should copy things from reality, blah, blah, I'm like, it's even better than reality because you're basically creating your own ref. So you're directing everything. You're not any more like, Okay, I have this in front of me, I would like to move this or change lighting, but I can't. So creating your own reference is also teaching you a lot. It's part of the work in the way that it adds another layer to your process. And your before you were like sketching, and then painting. Now you're like composing, sketching and painting, which is Yeah, which is really cool.

Laura Arango Baier: 24:22

Yeah, it's friggin awesome. Oh my god. It's like wow, I think that's that's like

Mathieu Nozieres: 24:29

you should try it out. I think

Laura Arango Baier: 24:31

I'm gonna try it out. I'm so awesome. Yeah, because like I just imagine like how you were thinking like the the possibilities are endless, right? Or, like, you could paint a scene from one side or one angle and then if you feel like it, you can like save that right? You save the file, and then you can revisit it. And then you can frickin paint it from a different angle, you know, like, yeah, exactly. Like if there's something hidden inside of it. That is freaking cool.

Mathieu Nozieres: 24:53

Yeah, drop drop this technology in the 19th century. Everyone goes crazy. There will be like Jean-Léon Gérôme would be like, "Woahh"

Laura Arango Baier: 25:01

He would have been like, "what?"

Mathieu Nozieres: 25:03

Yeah cause Messioner was doing his own miniatures like very very detailed even with like little textures and everything, so, yeah, if you would have shown him something like this, he would've been down

Laura Arango Baier: 25:15

Yeah, absolutely. I mean even then, you know, in the in the academic world, even they used photographs at the time that you know, photography was just starting out like, Bouguereau, 90% of his stuff is from photographs. Can you tell? Kind of, but he's still remixed it in his own way. Right? So I think, you know, a lot of people today, they're very anti pictures are anti like, I feel like, the further away we get from that generation, the more people like seem to become polarized about what they did, what they didn't do, what was perfect that they did and what wasn't right, they become more polarized, where, you know, instead, maybe those people of that time would have been much more welcoming of all of these opportunities. Because, like you said, it's about creating a beautiful image doesn't matter how, you know, what tools you use, as long as the tool doesn't, you know, I guess, as long as the tool doesn't become like a crutch, right? It doesn't hold you back. So I freaking love it. Yeah, they would have gone crazy for it.

Mathieu Nozieres: 26:19

Yeah, totally. Yeah.

Laura Arango Baier: 26:21

And, yeah. And then, I also wanted to ask you, because you seem to also have a bit of a love for philosophy, which I do as well. So I wanted to know, what your personal philosophy is for creating work that is authentic and timeless.

Mathieu Nozieres: 26:42

Okay, so this is a big one, it's probably like the question of a whole life time, I think I'm right into it now, because I had like a kind of a mix between an art block and like, existential questions. So I can't really answer because I don't even know if my work is truly authentic or not, because I'm made of many different things. Comic books, you know, at first, oil painting, contemporary art, also, music, we talked about videogames before, philosophy, so many fields interest me, and so many ways of thinking and seeing are interesting to me. So it's about, you know, taking a bit of things here and there, making your own cooking. And, you know, tasting, okay, this is a little bit of me, but too much of these guys. So you read, you redo your your cooking, and now it's like more balanced and everything. But this is really a lifetime quest for me. This is in my opinion, because I have a temper, which is hard to say very curious. And at the time, I have a difficulty to make choices. So combine, combine these, these things, you know, of like discovering constantly new things, and having a hard time to decide, it becomes very confusing at some point in your head. But it also allows you to do connections that no one would have thought off. So it's, it's a, it's a pro and a con at the same time. So I arrived to the States, I was like seeking new imageries also, because each imagery I used is when I was, you know, living in a specific country or using memories from this country because I lived in China, in India, in Russia, in Morocco, all these kinds of places. And now I live in the States. So I'm like, Okay, I need to use the, you know, some American imagery also. But how do I mix all this? Because the more culture I mix, the more it becomes like what the hell is going on? Because you have like, choose from all over the world. So I can't really answer your questions precisely. But I think that to be authentic is about, as I said, cooking, and always tasting how much of yourself is in the final dish? And when there's not enough of you then just rebalance everything? Yeah, which doesn't answer at all, but that's the best I can come.

Laura Arango Baier: 29:19

I mean, it makes sense, right? Because it's so fascinating as a topic, which is why I wanted to ask you that. It's actually also one of my big obsessions in this lifetime is to you know, try to understand what the self even is, right? So I'm huge on like Alan Watts and like, Buddhism and like Eastern philosophy precisely because their view of the self is so interesting. But there's this one thing that Alan Watts said that was you can only understand the self through the other. Right and what you're saying about you know, making this cooking and then seeing how much of you is in it. That's like one way of trying to differentiate what is me what isn't me, but at the same time this Self is so complicated, because the self isn't something that stays stagnant. You know, it's something that changes and evolves. Yeah. So it's like, oh, it's it can be so confusing. But I think, you know, as long as you are, you know, following yourself, and it seems like your work is extremely authentic, because the only person that could have made it as you write that already is like, very authentic. Um, I think that's, that's what counts. You know, it's like, you see the work and you see, sure, maybe you can improve something, or maybe Oh, well, I kind of liked it. But maybe I didn't like it as much as like this other painting, right? As long as you just keep making things that, you know, resonate with you, I think that's, that's it? You know, that's Yeah, it's true. Yeah, you can't really reach an answer.

Mathieu Nozieres: 30:55

Yes, yeah, the thing also is, when you're making an image, we have to keep in mind that an image is made to be seen. So your base, it's basically a dialogue with whoever is watching. So you have to be careful about what you're saying, through your image. And this is also confusing sometimes, because we could, you know, blend different techniques and approaches to have something that is visually authentic. But does the message carried by this image? You know, is this message authentic? So there are two layers, where you have to be authentic. And sometimes this is confusing me because I'm like, Okay, I made an image, which looks like no one. But the message in it. Maybe it's not really me. Like, you could have a very, a very unique image. But with a subject that is like, you know, violent. So it's like, wow, this is amazing that people who watch this will be this is amazing. But instead of me, I'm like, that's not really what I want to share with people. Right? This happened at some point when I was doing a lot of battle scenes. You know, it was cool, but at some point, I was like, I'm so Pacific myself, I hate violence. You know, I hate like conflict and all these kind of things. I never showered and like very attractive be cool. Why do I paint this? So some people will say like, it's a matter of balance, you paint this, so your chin in life and whatever. But I'm like, you know, if I die tomorrow, and people see my art. It's like, that's not really me. Even though it's visually impacting visually appealing, right? So that's the question I asked myself over the last month, as I told you, it's more about the content, and what is your message, rather than the technique? So? Yeah, wow.

Laura Arango Baier: 32:50

You're making me question everything.

Mathieu Nozieres: 32:53

Yeah, because when you're when you're an artist, it's all about talking to people. So you're you're thinking, what should I say? And, yeah, is what is what I'm saying? Useful? You know?

Laura Arango Baier: 33:04

Yeah, yeah. Or, Oh, God, you know, I'm also part of the group of people who believes that a painting really isn't complete until someone sees it. Right? And what, yeah, what they give back to the painting, by viewing it, which, of course, each person will have a different reflection, right, they'll have a different way of looking at the painting. But I do agree that there is, you know, the painting in itself holds a message. And we do have to be careful about what message we're putting out into the world. Because it can be Oh, yeah. Yeah, it's, it's complicated.

Mathieu Nozieres: 33:46

Especially, especially when you're a professional as for people who aspire to become professional, always, as you mentioned before, the pressure grows when you become a professional. Because once you're a professional, you have no matter if you like it or not, at some point, you're going to have to be recognizable. So you have you're going to have to brand a little bit yourself your imagery. And, and that's where the pressure rises, because you're like, I have to be identified cable how to say identity, identifiable, identifiable. So what should be my visual identity? what should be my, my content identity? And when you're not a professional, you can explore whatever because you know, you don't have to. Yeah, you don't have to read How do you say

Laura Arango Baier: 34:43

you can send a friend Yeah. recognizable.

Mathieu Nozieres: 34:49

recognizable? Yeah. And and that creates some some pressure sometimes in my mind, because I'm like, Okay, now I need to go straight into a direction. So let's make this direction, authentic and what I want. And the process of becoming an artist is very long. So you, you don't want to have to say like, go in zigzag all the time in my foot, I mean that you can but for me, I feel better when I go like with a distant clear destination in mind. So this clear this nation sometimes can get confusing. And because you're a professional, you don't, you shouldn't show it too much. Because it's your show, and what you earn certeyn I don't know by which magic, but people will feel it, and they won't be too hyped about your work, they won't buy your work. On the other way, when you're so confident about what you're doing, people somehow feel it and things, you know, start to flow. So it's all these kind of things, which you know, creates like stress. And and when you're starting to doubt it can vastly become a bit overwhelming. Yeah,

Laura Arango Baier: 36:02

yeah. And like you said, people will see it. And that's actually a really excellent marketing tip too, that you know, you can search around, right, you can jump around. But like, if you're jumping around into something that you don't normally do, maybe it's better to keep it under wraps. For now, right? Really just keep it as a side thing. You don't have to show everything you paint. Yeah, how BoldBrush we inspire artists to inspire the world. Because creating art creates magic. And the world is currently in desperate need of magic. BoldBrush provides artists with free art marketing, creativity, and business ideas and information. This show is an example. We also offer written resources, articles and a free monthly art contest open to all visual artists. We believe that fortune favors the bold brush. And if you believe that to sign up completely free, a BoldBrush show.com. That's B O LDBRUSH show.com. The BoldBrush Show is sponsored by FASO. Now more than ever, it's crucial to have a website when you're an artist, especially if you want to be a professional in your career. Thankfully, with our special link facile.com forward slash podcast, you can make that come true. And also get over 50% off your first year on your artists website. Yes, that's basically the price of 12 lattes in one year, which I think is a really great deal considering that you get sleek and beautiful website templates that are also mobile friendly e commerce print on demand in certain countries, as well as access to our marketing center that has our brand new art marketing calendar. And the art marketing calendar is something that you won't get with our competitor, the art marketing calendar gives you day by day, step by step guides on what you should be doing today, right now in order to get your artwork out there and seen by the right eyes, so that you can make more sales this year. So if you want to change your life and actually meet your sales goal this year, then start now by going to our special link faso.com forward slash podcast. That's us a s o.com forward slash podcast. So I think that's excellent marketing advice to just like, you know, don't confuse your, your people. Because even even the way the algorithm works, right, the way the algorithm works is it connects you to people who has, you know, who have work that is similar to yours. And if you start showing a bunch of different things, the algorithm is gonna be like who the hell

Mathieu Nozieres: 38:23

yeah, exactly. It's, I think it's about, you know, some very, some purist will say, like, Dan, if you're thinking about marketing and branding, it's not art anymore, which, which some, which somehow could be true, but I feel that it's just about accepting that you're going to have a major thing, which is gonna be your branding and marketing. And it doesn't stop you from exploring a lot of things, you know, on the side. But I think maybe someone will say I'm wrong. And I'm totally open to this. But I think that having one thing that you're recognizable with is basically what's going to make you successful in terms of, you know, popularity, money, everything. But on the other hand, my artistic side, I will say this is not what matters the most. So, if at some point you feel that you deeply need to explore something, just go for it. There is no, there is no say I can pronounce myself on this because there aren't really rules there. There are people who explore and are successful, there are people who brand are successful. There are people who Brendon are not successful and whatever. So yeah,

Laura Arango Baier: 39:33

exactly. Like there are people who, you know, got even Picasso, right, he had like a blue period, right? And he did the same. Honestly, I'm not a fan of Picasso, but but even he who was like a modernist who did the same crap all the time. Technically, he had his time periods, even within his work because that's, you know, as we were saying before with the philosophy of the software, it's something that evolves. Like yes, you're gonna have that personal bro Round, but, you know, keep it recognizable enough, even within you know those things that people will look at a painting. Oh, yeah, that's from when this person was in this period of their life, right. And that'll just come naturally. And like you said, you know, it's, it's something that really needs, like your insides are just screaming that this needs to come out like I have to pursue this. Just go for it. Like, I mean, your real fans and the people who really appreciate you. They're gonna love you anyway, they're gonna be like, Oh, my God, look at this. This is awesome, right?

Mathieu Nozieres: 40:33

Yeah, true. There's a comic book artist they might use? I don't know, if you know him. He's really, yeah, he's really well known into the comic, like, he's considered one of the comic book gods, you know, from the 60s. So he's, and he constantly changed his style over the years. And this has been, basically his branding, um, someone who's changing, but you always feel there's a flavor, like a similar flavor. So it's changing but remaining with the same kind of, you know, I don't know how to say yeah, flavor. So these can also be a way to go. Probably what can be more difficult is when you totally change things from A to Z, and you go like, in an opposite direction, and then another opposite. And this is difficult, because you don't really know the destination. But if you're just like most of us are because so and you, you keep evolving, and that's your, that's your Moto, and you don't really know where you're gonna go. But Your destination is basically the way I like to put like, if you like bullies, right? There is no way to happiness, happiness, the way it would be like, there is no way to win an award, you know? So it's also branding, somehow in itself. I don't even know if what I'm saying makes any sense. I'm just thinking, Okay, people are gonna be like, these guys, like, so confused.

Laura Arango Baier: 42:03

I mean, you know, we're in a very complicated path. Because I don't see the path of the artist as being, you know, we're just painting pretty pictures, right? I see the path of the artist is, like how we were discussing, you know, it's the path through understanding the world around us and ourselves. And, you know, the things that are important. So there's, oh, there's so many layers, especially when you're a realist painter, right? You're painting quote, unquote, reality. But you're also storytelling through those paintings, that adds more layers of complexity that, you know, you can't create these things without experiencing life. So it's like, artists, the artist is basically someone who experiences life and then has a way of rehashing it in a way that makes people see it and appreciate it. I mean, it's, we're, we're living life. That's what we Yeah, true. I hope that made sense. Oh, my God.

Mathieu Nozieres: 43:02

That makes it just questions that are hard to answer with a very universal, you know, answer. Because if I'm thinking back of what I just said, for the last, let's say, 15 minutes, there are a lot of contradictions somehow, I'm like, Yeah, you. Branding is good. But for some other people, branding is about not having a branding, which doesn't make any sense compared to what I said. So it's just I think everyone, you know, will find so should find what works for him, or her. And, and yeah, that's it. I just said also, we also evolved through time. I think having a branding is my opinion right now, because I'm also searching myself for something. So I'm going towards this direction. But maybe in 10 years from now, I'm in another Matthew. So what I said just doesn't make any more sense. So yeah, I hope it resonates with with people who are searching the same thing as I do right now. And if for other people, then you're seeing you in See you in 10 years, or I don't know, two months. I don't know. When I'll have discovered more things.

Laura Arango Baier: 44:13

Yeah, I mean, that that's a wonderful testament to to the evolution of, you know, our perspectives and who we are and the way we see the world. You know, one day we think, oh, yeah, that's totally like this. And then the next day, we're like, Nah, yeah, exactly. That's part of life. And life is, you know, a group of contradictions, which is why navigating life is so complicated and why, you know, with this podcast, I love that every single guest that I have on their paths has been completely different. And would they've prioritize, I guess what they have in common is that they've prioritized creating beautiful pieces, you know, something that calls to them. So there is that thread in common but the way that they do things, their processes, totally different, and how they even landed in their career. mind blowing, which, you know, I did want to ask you also how what was that transition like for you to go from student to living artist, like full time artist.

Mathieu Nozieres: 45:15

Okay, so this has been a little random, because I started painting when I was 21 in Romania, so I had like, just once color year of training, and at the end of the year, let's let me rewind. So I, I was like student there in Romania. And in the middle of my studies, I attend a conference there with the school, and I see a woman speaking. And I see she's French. And I'm, like, I heard about this person. And the person happened to be Katherine me, which is the director of Art Press, which is a leading contemporary art magazine in France. And I'm like, wow, why is she? Why is she doing here in Romania. And after the conference, you know, everyone's drinking, eating a little bit, like there's a post conference, cocktail, or whatever. And I go to her, and I just say, Well, you know, nice meeting you, you're in Romania. So we start discussing a little bit. And it was really out of the blue, I just, you know, started chatting, because that was interesting. And, you know, saying hi, and so discuss and, at the end of this color year, when, when I have to go back in Belgium, because I was studying in Belgium back then. I'm like, I have met this person from Art Press, I could send her my work, just to have advice on how to navigate as an artist, any tips for like, a student who wants to become a professional artist. So I sent her images of my work. And I receive a call a few days later, and Art Press is actually willing to do like three full page on my work in their magazine. Sounds like, wow, this is really, really cool. So got these three pages, galleries starting starting to contact me, I picked one of the galleries, which I felt was the best fit. And when the next became a professional after one year of painting. And since then, nothing stopped. So yeah, it's really, it can be as simple as that for like young people who listen to us. Sometimes just, you know, friendly talk with someone can open like, big doors without even knowing it. So never be afraid to you know, talk to people from the industry from the market from the you know, the community, whatever, just go for it.

Laura Arango Baier: 47:48

Yeah. You see your your path. Wow, totally different. Holy crap. That is so awesome, though. That's like, you know, right place, right time, right person. And right, preparedness to because, you know, he got to that point where, like, you know, what, I think my work is good. At the moment, I'm gonna reach out you never know. So that really, you know, brings the value of network. Yeah.

Mathieu Nozieres: 48:16

And I remember people saying, like, don't send her work, you're gonna you're gonna look stupid. She's because she's really like it, you know, it was really top top here. And I was like, whatever. If she says, No, it says no, if I don't have an answer anyway, I'm 21. You know, it's like, that's not the first No, I will receive so. I just sent it so also these don't listen to other people. When you feel like doing something, just do it. So why not? Yeah, why not? No one's gonna die. So yeah,

Laura Arango Baier: 48:47

the worst you can hear is no, you know, exactly. Like, wow. Or even even like, Oh, we love your work, but not yet. Right? Because that also happens or they'll keep you in mind for the future. That's the other thing I know. People don't often think about you know, is if you don't put yourself out there. No one's gonna see you. No one's gonna magically know to call you because you're an expert in this one thing if they have no idea you exist.

Mathieu Nozieres: 49:13

Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Exactly.

Laura Arango Baier: 49:16

So kudos, bro. That's frickin awesome. You know? Yeah.

Mathieu Nozieres: 49:22

Yeah, exactly. And thanks, so many things can happen like this. Like, how did I enter the American market also, as I was sending my work to see from Arcadia, right, who's like top tier gallery in fine art when I wanted to become a fine artist. 100%. And at the same he answers me like a long male. I was like, stoked. I was like, wow, this guy really takes the time. You know, he really respects artists. So she writes me a long meal, but basically it's like, Thanks, but no thanks. And I'm like and, and my Mom says like, oh, there is Michelle and American friend of us who's going with her boys in Los Angeles, because she has some work there to do. You told me about the states, maybe it would be good to hop on the plane with her, you know, and just spend a week there. And I'm like, Okay. And so I took the plane and actually went to Arcadia. So a guy at the counter and say, Oh, you're Steve. He says, Yeah. And I said, Matthew, we communicated by email. And he's like, he doesn't recognize me, because you know, so many emails daily. But I tell him that I came from France. And he's like, You came from France? Well, they there was no show around. It was they were switching shows. So there was nothing on the walls. But he's he tells me like, you come from such a long way. Let me show you the future show in the basement. Storage. So I'm like, Wow, super excited. So I go down and look at the paintings. And because I'm passionate about painting, I was, I wasn't just looking around like, Well, nice. And I was like this close to the canvas looking, which varnish they use? What is their technique? And I think he felt there's like these guys really into painting. And at some point, he tells me, like, can you show me again, your work? So make sure. So I show him my work? And he goes, like, Oh, yes, I remember. And then he looks at me and says, you know, what, do me two pieces for upcoming group show. And we'll see. And that's how I exhibited with our Kalia. Just like taking a plane, you know, arriving, doing like, Okay, once again, I'm going to talk to people. Normally just Hey, what's up? Yeah, we exchanged by email. And then it happened. If I would have stayed in France, or wouldn't have, you know, entered the gallery before our think thinking, you know, like, oh, he said, thanks. But no things by email. There's no point of for me to meet him, you know, then nothing would have happened. So.

Laura Arango Baier: 52:03

Yeah, exactly. Yeah. And I've met Steve, Steve is really nice. That you went, it's corny that you went when our kiddos still in the West Pasadena,

Mathieu Nozieres: 52:13

New York? Yeah.

Laura Arango Baier: 52:16

Steve is awesome. He's, I think, I think he probably really loved that you actually went out there and said, Hey, I'm visiting, because he's the type of person you know, and I respect him. 100%, the type of person who really puts in the effort for his artists like he is so like, like you said, like, he left a huge paragraph. Right? He cares. He really cares about, you know, the people he puts on his walls. So

Mathieu Nozieres: 52:45

yeah, that was the first. Yeah, that was the first time a gallery who's not interested in working with me. It's the first time someone who's not interested to have your work would still take so much time to try to advise you and guide you. I was like, this is unique. Because basically, if people are not interested to work with you on the moment, they will not even answer. If they're slightly interested, maybe they'll say like, no, we'll, you know, just contact us in a few years or whatever. And he was like, yeah, basically, I don't need any more. Any more artists. But still, here's what you can do. And I was I've been really touched by this. I said, like, if every galleries could be like this, many artists will feel much more confident because so many artists, you know, hate galleries, or are scared to contact galleries, because there's, you know, they're preventing their egos from from being touched. And and of course, you feel down if someone doesn't even answer your email, it means like, your work interest us your work doesn't interest us at the level that we're not even going to take time to answer which for which we're a nice bearing artists is really difficult, you know? So yeah, if everyone who'd be like Steve much easier, people will be pumped confident and yeah, much better.

Laura Arango Baier: 54:18

Yeah, I agree. If every if every gallerist was like Steve, I think there would be a lot more art being sold on the market, that's for sure. Yeah, yeah. Um, that's really awesome. And speaking actually of galleries for you personally, you know, because I think every artist today you know, considering that the market you know, can fluctuate. A lot of artists today need to have you know, passive income or other forms of income. So my question to you is, what has been one of the best ways for you to make money basically has been galleries hasn't been you know, prints or selling yourself?

Mathieu Nozieres: 54:59

So, first I started with galleries because you know, everyone told me like my elders, the teachers, the professional arts and everything were like they they're working with galleries, they were like, there's there's the gallery, Gary's taking your cut, occurred. This is how things work, blah, blah. So I was like, Okay, this is the system. So I went with this for a long time. And at some point, I met my future wife, ya know, Nogi San, in my she's from my hometown in France, we moved here together. And she's into illustration. So she's working with many companies, many different types of clients. She's also doing like frescoes. illustration for books for trailers for video games a lot. And I was like, this makes so much sense, because you're basically having your identity spread into very different fields. And this brings money because you don't put your order all your eggs in the same basket, right? So I was like, I'm only with galleries. They take 50% of my work, I still need to pay framing shipping. My business plan looks so weak compared to artists like my wife, so I rethought all the world process. And I started to expand thinking, telling myself like, with who I'd be hired to work, okay, I'd be hired to work with like, these kind of people, these kind of things. And that's how I started to work with like, bands, for instance, like, album covers illustration for other projects for digital things, also. And at first, I was like, who's gonna want oil painting outside of the oil painting market, because it's so traditional and old somehow. And no, ghee told me like, put it the way around in a market, which is highly digitalized. Having like an authentic oil painting is so unique. And she told me like, there are not many painters who can create any type of imagery with oil. So I felt like okay, there is a, there is an opening there. And I started to brand myself in this way, like, you know, using a traditional medium, like old painting. But for cool, and like up to date projects. And this is really exciting. And people with whom I work, they were always so high, because in their super like modern envy, they were having, you know, my oil painting, enhance, and they were like, what is so cool. And in some projects, they even hired me, even though they don't need it for the final product, but just for the hype of having an old painting symbolizing this world project that we're in. So right now I'm like, Yeah, bread between all these different things, and also prints and everything, of course. So yeah, that's an interesting way to go. If you want to expand. Always remember that not many people expand with oil paintings. So there's a there's a new opening there.

Laura Arango Baier: 58:42

Yeah, you're the second person has told me this actually, because I recently interviewed an artist called Kowloon and he was recently hired as an artist by Marvel. Wow, yeah. Precisely because, you know, there's so few oil painters in the illustration market in the you know, the, I guess everything that today has become like Comic Con and all these conventions and video games. It's very very rare to find someone who's like classically trained that way. So yeah,

Mathieu Nozieres: 59:13

that's yeah, so that's that's something cool just trying to keep my your mind open and not be like, you know, oil paintings should stay on the easel in the museum and gallery walls. It can be much more than this. Because as I said, in the end, it's about an image. An image can travel through so many different fields, so why not?

Laura Arango Baier: 59:31

Exactly yeah. And again, like it's it's so funny how we went from like, oil painting being this archaic. Oh, it's dead thing to wow, that's so rare. No one does that.

Mathieu Nozieres: 59:44

Yeah, because it's rare. And it's also, you know, for a long time, I was a little complex by the fact of doing old painting because I'm not 100% Fine Art in my daily life as As the video games, my brother is a semi pro skateboarder. You know, so I navigate with my dad is a scientist, many people from different fields. And I was a little bit, you know, I'm doing all the painting like, yeah, and then you know, this all this old dude thing, you know, with, like, dusty still lives and everything. But at some point, I felt like no, actually, it's just a tool. Because if I meet someone who's like telling me, I'm a cello player, I'm like, Wow, it's so cool. So why should I feel that oil paintings like, you know, not so cool. So I said, Okay, it's just what I'm doing with it. Right? So, it totally changed my mind. I said, with oil painting, again, do lots of cool stuff for like, cool projects. And cool people are not stuck, you know, with the old guard that is, like, you know, just paint from life and all these kind of things. Yeah. No offense to just kind of thinking, but I really wanted to get away from this.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:01:09

I totally agree, I think, you know, if there's something that really, you know, kind of annoys me about, you know, certain people is when they try to force other people to do something that, you know, maybe doesn't work for them. Which is why, you know, I'm also all for, like, if it works, it works. You know, if you like it, do it, if it doesn't work, don't do it. That's it. But don't force other people to like, you know, do it because then you're forcing them out of their authentic path or out of, you know, a, maybe something that they should be experiencing. So I'm 100% with you on that, like, just do it. It's cool.

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:01:52

Still, it's still I spend a lot of time looking at these old guards, paintings, because technically, it's fascinating, right? But it's, I want to bring this to something that, yeah, it's more lined up with who I am, and my expectations and all these kind of things. I just need a blend of many things, as I said, with like comics and everything. And I don't want to be stuck in something that is a little towards the past too much. Because I love doing creating bridges and finding new stuff. So yeah, it's like, take the old painting and just, like, move forward with it as much as we can.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:02:26

Yeah, yeah. And I mean, that's what the Old Masters would have wanted. Anyway, you know, it's if they wanted paintings to stay the same, we wouldn't have had a transition, you know, of paintings in the first place. Like, we would we would still, you know, can still be painting like, in medieval times with have absolutely no idea how perspective works, you know? Thanks to DaVinci it's a big deal.

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:02:52

Yeah, true.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:02:53

Yeah. But, you know, that's how it is. Um, and then do you have any final advice for someone who maybe is a student looking to become a full time artist, and they want to make that jump? Do you have any final

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:03:07

tips? Yes. So if you believe in yourself, go for it. Like the best example is Nogi San. I told you that my wife, she was into engineering school. And she felt like she wants to be an artist. She was always showing, you know, but she had no support from her family. Some people are telling her like, you shouldn't do that. But she tried. She, she worked in a convention, first convention, selling her art, it worked really well. And she felt like, okay, there is a possibility that it works. So she dropped everything. And started, started her artistic career, and it actually worked very, very well. So sometimes we walk, you know, after work, and we're discussing, like, imagine, if you wouldn't have made this decision back then. You know. So if you feel really convinced that you can do it, there's no reason to fail, such as go for it. If you feel a little unsure. There's no hurry, you can still wait and jump when you're sure. So I wouldn't pressure too much on this. On this question. Just do things when you're sharing jump? Because it can there's no reason to fail. And if you feel like waiting, just wait a little bit because you know, so many people pressure themselves to like, I have to jump now or I will never be able to do it and they put these very, they put so much pressure onto themselves that in the end they they're stuck. They just don't move. Right. So yeah, take it easy and when you feel ready, just go for it and it will work. First. Yeah, that's what I can advise. And it works in any fields, right. So I felt ready, I went to talk to this lady, it worked. Notice and felt ready, she jumped, it worked. Everyone who's a professional artist, it's most of the time the same at some point, they feel like, okay, let's go. And they just go, and it works. So

Laura Arango Baier: 1:05:23

yeah, it's about answering the call, you know, it's like having that interior voice and like, actually listening to it like now,

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:05:31

you know, and once again, if you're unsure, take your time, there's no rush for being professionalist was listening to this guy, Francois Sheng, a Chinese man who arrived in France when he was a kid, and who actually learned French so well that he became a writer and one of the most acclaimed French writer from nowadays. And he's, he said that he published his first book, at 50 years old. And he became so respected that he entered the French Academy. So he said, There's no hurry, just do things when you when you're ready, and that's it. So best advice would be no pressure.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:06:22

Yeah, yes. I love that. I love that so much. Because, you know, especially, you know, when you grew up in the United States, and actually in any culture that's, you know, motivated by the big three careers, right? So like, lawyer, doctor, engineer, right, any, any culture that forces you into any of those careers, it's gonna be really hard to not have that pressure, right? It's gonna be really hard to convince everyone else that like, it's okay to slow down, it's okay to take your time. And I'm actually relearning that because I went back to back to back to all of his academic academic schools. And it destroyed me, because, you know, you feel so much pressure to like, do things, how they teach you and to impress other people. And it becomes like, much more important than the actual work. Right? It becomes like, it's almost like I for a while forgot why I was even there in the first place anymore. It was like, No, thanks to that, that awesome piece of advice you gave, which is slow down. Okay. I've actually rediscovered it. So I can, I can say that, you know, as a testament of yes, I've done it and it does work. Okay, it's okay to slow down. There's no pressure, you know, maybe, you know, get a day job if you need money, obviously. But

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:07:47

yeah, we should remember also that our brain doesn't function well under stress. When you're stressed, your brain is just, you know, you're not going to make the right decision and the right thinking and everything. So you need to make decisions when you're relaxed when you're feeling comfortable. Feeling good. So yeah, that's, that's the best way to go, I think.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:08:12

Oh, yeah. And now I want to ask you a bit of a strange question, which is, is there anything right outside of painting right outside of being an artist? Anything that you're secretly an expert in? That you like, people wouldn't know? Unless, you know, they knew you or they asked you like, Hey, what are you what else are you like? Good at?

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:08:35

Okay. Experts are just like, good,

Laura Arango Baier: 1:08:38

something you're very, very knowledgeable on that maybe has nothing to do with painting. Or, you know,

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:08:44

yeah, okay. I played hockey for a long time. Very, very long time. Yeah. I played guitar. Also a lot I wanted. There's a small portion of my life where I wanted to become a rock star. It didn't last long. But I was really hyper focused on this like days and nights playing guitar. I play online, FPS one hour and a half every day. I was playing I was a hard course Counter Strike player. And then my wife prefers to play volleyball. And so we play valorant now, so I'm taking these very seriously, like, every day we play well, and you know, in ranking and ranking and everything. A I think I'm so bad at cooking that becomes incredible. Like I'm an expert in not knowing how to cook and like very, very bad. No way. Yeah. Which is strange, but my sister is a cook. She open her restaurant, so I'm a little ashamed. But yeah, I'm very bad. And the last thing I don't know There are so many things. Yeah, comics, probably not enough another other people know that. That's probably from all my list. The one I'm the most, how to say, aware of and where I have the most knowledge. Funny comic books with, like, very funny characters totally opposite of like painting is just like crazy stories with like, very eccentric characters and everything that you can feel is the same person. And it's impossible to to make the bridge. Yeah. Yeah.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:10:30

That was interesting. Oh, my God. I love asking that because, you know, obviously, you're a person, right? You have dimensions. Do you have of course, the artist side, but then it's like, what else do you do on the outside? Right? What what other things, you know, bring that extra spice into your life that you know.

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:10:51

Ye ah, I mean, painting and being an artist is my number one pick, like if I have to be. If we rewind, and I'm about to be born, and I'm asked like, what path you want. I'll be number one artists. But if number one artist is not possible, I still have a list of like, so many things I would have enjoyed, right? I'm very about Jose. I'm not someone who's bored on a regular basis. If I can paint, I'm like, hooked on something else. And yeah, I have a lot of passions. But being an artist, number one, that's for sure.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:11:30

Yes. Yeah. Everything else feeds into it. Maybe or, you know, it's like you rotate them.

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:11:38

Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Yeah. Oh,

Laura Arango Baier: 1:11:41

I love that. Um, so now for our closing. I wanted you to tell us about your upcoming group show at Haven gallery. And then also your upcoming show with beautiful bizarre.

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:11:54

Yeah, so I we're having a two pieces with Nogi at Haven. Now, the theme of the show was Duality. And each artist was asked to do two paintings, you know, dialoguing with each other on the theme of duality. And then I felt like, Nogi is using black ink, black and white. I'm using oil painting. So they're basically the opposite on the spectrum. And I felt this is already a cool concept in itself. So I proposed the gallery to do one painting, with my art and another painting with Nogis art and with the subject that communicates and the techniques which are opposite. And she was hyped. So we have these two pieces there. So we're really happy. So first exhibition together, more to come, hopefully. And yeah, there is the beautiful, bizarre exhibition. I think it's in November. So I need to create a piece for this too. And right now, I'm exploring some other imagery more linked with America, like Western art and everything, and I want to see how I can blend all these kinds of things. So there's a lot in French we say, "beaucoup de pains sur la planche" meaning a lot of bread on the table, there's a lot to a lot of things to work on. Yeah.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:13:08

Yeah. That's great. Oh, and then you also mentioned, do you have some prints that you're going to be taking out?

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:13:15

Yeah, I'm gonna do a sign really soon with one of the less latest paintings, the one which is in heaven gallery, actually. So I want to do some prints with this. And, yeah, prints are cool, because it basically allows anyone to have your art. I like that. Because sometimes, you know, when you sell your paintings, they're expensive. So it's, it's reserved for a very small portion, you know, of people and I love to do prints because anyone can have your art you know, and, and the same some artists that I love, I will never be able to buy their work, but I can buy your prints. So that's the prints are a very cool way to keep art circulating. You know, between people and things like this. Yeah. Yeah.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:13:57

Wonderful. And then of course, where can people find more of your work?

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:14:02

Oh, Instagram of course, Tiktok, website Threadless lately and yeah, I think that's an or YouTube, I'm gonna have him going to lunch. I have a YouTube channel but which is like desert. But what I want to start with a new concept of like, talking about anecdotes, fine artists, anecdotes, from funny ones, you know, to like more serious ones and everything just like yeah, to speak about how is it to be an artist and all this kind of thing. So yeah, when I will find time, though, but that's on my to do list.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:14:44

Yeah, yeah. Making videos can be

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:14:46

a lot of consuming. Yeah.

Laura Arango Baier: 1:14:50

Well, awesome. Thank you so much for coming on the show.

Mathieu Nozieres: 1:14:54

Thank you, Laura. Thank you for having me. It was great. chatting about art. And yeah, thanks again for On the rotation

Laura Arango Baier: 1:15:01

of course