Matthew Ritchie

1. Does he prefer doing installations or paintings?
2. Are his pieces abstract?
3. What is your relationships with the galleries?

I like how his artwork has different functions, as in to teach and entice us to participate. It's also very complex that is usually overwhelms the viewers, he showcases and extends his audience with so much information we cant soak it all in. It's fascinating. Here's a guy who has ambition. He will stop at nothing to get and learn and do what he wants. "He wants everything." I like how he incorporates this idea of "everything" into his artwork. He starts with the time before the big bang and then works from there. How exactly does one do that with out their head exploding. Where do you begin to make such artwork, thats a lot of research.

I also think it's fascinating that he presents a key to each of his pieces. It's almost like a game, its how to unlock the meaning behind his work and for work so complex and intertwined with information, a key isnt such a bad idea. I would love to sit in front of one of his works and try to decode it and break it down, discover the meanind behind the artwork. I also like how he uses characters to narrate the universe's evolution since the birth of time.

I like he he creates "epic tales" through his artwork. And also how it takes place no where, there are no boundaries of limits holding it down, it is what it wants and needs to be. It's all very deep and well thought out stuff. He loves puzzles and games. One artwork consisted solely of equations and clues to what his next piece would be. How awesome is that!! I would love to view his work in a gallery and be confused and then sit down and work it out like a math problem, it's as if his artwork is playing the role of the teacher, and we are it's students, waiting to learn.

Obviously he prefers doing pieces that confuse and overwhelm the heck out of his viewers, whether it be paintints installations or what not. And they may seem abstract from a distance but upon closer inspection you notice a set of instructions/rules/keys to decode his pieces. And, he describes his relationships with the galleries as a partner who brings complementary strengths and creative differences to the relationship.

1. What got you started into such complex pieces that require a key to understand it?
2. Are you ocncerned about the longetivity of your work?
3. Has anyone ever complained to you about how complex and hard your artwork it to understand?