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Gothic Art Nouveau and Matt Hughes: The Art and The
Artist
Self-described as both student and teacher, the work of the artist has
masterfully emerged from beyond the constraints of both. Ingeniously
blending the romantic aesthetic beauty of Art Nouveau with the dark
concepts of Gothic art, painter Matt Hughes is best known for giving
rise to Gothic Art Nouveau, a new art movement that's redefining the
relationship between viewer and subject, entwining both into an
intimate rendezvous, sharing dark and ethereal realms immersed in
religion and mythology, death and spirituality, human nature and
inherent evil, ultimately leaving the viewer with a profundity of
self-reflection and introspection.
While the majority of Matt's influences include Art Nouveau artists
Alphonse Mucha and Gustav Klimt, the influences of artists such as
Herbert Draper, Gustave Dore, John Singer Sargent as well as Maxfield
Parrish, one of the renowned illustrators from the "golden age of
Illustration", are equally apparent. Introspectively drawing his own
inspiration from self reflection, personal experience, and an inept
talent for what he refers to as "visual method acting", Matt has
instinctively merged conceptual twists on conventional artistic themes
with spiritual and philosophical concepts to interpret the most
fundamental of human emotion and action into his visions, resulting in
a strange and remarkable melange, now known as Gothic Art Nouveau.
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