11/1/10

MCB Pick of the Week: Matt Eaton Solo Exhibition @ 323East Gallery Nov 6th



Matt Eaton Debuts His First Solo Exhibition "I Think We Can Get Along" at 323East Gallery
Limited Edition Print Release Celebrating the Exhibition on www.1xRUN.com

323East Gallery has recently enjoyed the success of exhibiting some of Detroit's most renowned artists including Glenn Barr, Ron Zakrin and Thomas Thewes.

Now 323East will shift their focus to a relatively unknown artist who is no stranger to Detroit. Matt Eaton will showcase his unique take on art with the " I Think We Can Get Along" exhibition – opening Saturday, November 6th with an artist reception from 6 – 11pm and running through Wednesday, December 1st.

The show is free and open to the public.

Ghostly International's Tadd Mullinix and Electrobounce's Brian Gillespie

will provide the sounds for the event.

As a preceding celebration of Matt Eaton's first Solo Exhibition, he is releasing a print on 1xRUN.com, a new website from 323East. 1xRUN.com is an exciting site that caters to art collectors and print enthusiasts by selling an exclusive, one time run of a Limited Edition print from an array of exceptional international artists. Matt Eaton is 1xRUN's first featured artist, presenting his print "LOAF" measuring at 12x12 printed on 100% acid free Giclee. This print is limited to a max edition size of 33 and will only be available for 1 week.

Check out www.1xrun.com for more information on the print release.
Having spent his formative years living in cities such as Los Angeles, London, New York and Detroit, Eaton became compelled to investigate his surroundings.
While trying to find some familiarity and comfort in these new places, he became fascinated with local signage, lettering, graffiti and advertising. This quickly led to a deep admiration for graffiti, lettering and typography. The layers of old ads plastered on the walls of buildings and subway tunnels communicated directly with him and became a focal point of inspiration. The decay of once new and seemingly important information and how quickly it is forgotten and plastered over has become a major theme in his work.

This imagery became a traveling companion of sorts, never having to be left behind and waiting to be enjoyed in every new place Eaton found himself with bright friendly colors and new themes. Mixing these mental images with memories of sayings and quotations he associates with certain areas and people allows him to use his training in calligraphy and graphic design to produce unique snapshots of his life experience. Having long ago stepped away from the active world of graffiti, Eaton still employs techniques and materials native to graffiti culture. Using only spray paint on wood allows him to explore a more personally realistic and comfortable process.
Without any formal training in painting or art he has discovered his own style and technique through trial and error; as well as an extensive body of work that includes painting, commercial graphic design and illustration. Eaton has done everything from glass blowing to silk screening and photography, to cabinet making and typography.

He has taken courses at colleges and studied under friends and peers and is always exploring new areas for techniques or materials to further his self-expression. Eaton's paintings have been exhibited in galleries and group shows around the world. As a designer he has created book covers for HarperCollins and sculptural/graphic design material for some of New York's leading creative agencies. In "I Think We Can Get Along" Eaton will display over 30 new paintings created while staying in Detroit over the last year, as well as a number of photographs.