New Orleans collage artist Demond Matsuo explores the mythic heroes and symbols of many cultures in his mixed-media works.
Artist: Matsuo was born in Morgan City, LA, and grew up in nearby Patterson, reading, playing video games and training in the martial arts.
At Louisiana State University (LSU), Matsuo started in political science but wanted to be a poet. He later took a painting class with Edward Pramuk, an abstract expressionist painter who taught painting, printmaking, drawing and design at LSU for 35 years. And wanted more.
Matsuo got permission from Pramuk to take upper-level art classes, where he progressed quickly under various teachers, including the late Michael Crespo, known for his striking representational paintings of such things as fish, animals, fruit and flowers.
He left college and traveled for nearly one year to Spain, Turkey and India, where he was surrounded by textiles, patterns, architecture and poetry that the Louisiana native had never seen or experienced before.
Matsuo returned to Baton Rouge, where he lived and worked with other working artists in an abandoned Coca-Cola Building on Government Street.
Along with other artists, Matsuo started to show his work at 200 Government and then at Rue Cou Cou. Since 2008, Matsuo has shown with Ann Connelly Fine Art in Baton Rouge.
Today, Matsuo, a full-time artist for more than 25 years, lives and works in New Orleans, where he has a home studio.
About his name: Matsuo changed his name because his favorite Haiku poet is Matsuo Basho. He also read that the famous Japanese painter Hokusai would change his name every 10 years when styles changed so he would always be fresh.
Art & materials: Detailed, mixed-media collage drawings on paper ($450 and up) and paintings on canvas ($2,000 and up). Popular subjects include gladiators, geishas, samurai and stags.
His work can be found in public and private collections in cities across the country, including Atlanta, Dallas, New Orleans and New York.
“My clients have gone on to become close friends,” said Matsuo.
Favorite tools:
- Scissors
- The library
- YouTube: To watch and listen to philosophy while he paints.
Inspirations:
- Japanese and French textiles.
- Poetry: From Surrealist to Dada.
- Egon Schiele, an Austrian painter.
- Mannerist movement.
- Japanese wood block prints.
- Travel in Europe, Asia and Mexico.
Recent awards/honors: Many, including:
- Exhibit at the Louisiana State Museums’ Capitol Park Museum. The year-long exhibit explores the French, Creole, and Tunica languages of Louisiana through art and storytelling. 2023-2024.
- Featured in Art Works, a Louisiana Public Broadcasting’s show. 2019
- Best in Show, Art Melt, Baton Rouge. 2017.
Recent project: Two, 66-inch by 86-inch knights on canvas.
Where to buy:
Get social: Instagram: @demondmatsuo
