Screening Notes for Herbert Matter

Herbert Matter is a name I'd never heard before starting this documentary. I got to discover Herbert's life as it unfolded. And it seemed like he could never stop surprising me with how he embraced each new form of art as it came along. He went from drawing with his hands to photography (inventing photographic collage along the way) to video art. Matter had personal relationships with famous artists like Eames and Pollock. His close relationship with Pollock greatly influenced both of their work.

I have probably seen tons of Matter's work throughout my life and my career as an art student, and never realized it. He created so much and such varied types of art throughout his lifetime, yet all of it has a very consistant feel to it. Everything he's done is incredibly genuine. He was a prominent artist who was extremely active during the actual birth of the graphic design field.

Oh now I'm at the sad part where his family is sad about how he didn't really pay them much attention, in favor of his work. He may have been a genius, a graphic designer ahead of his time at all times, but what does that all matter if you've never taken a photo of your own son? It brings up interesting questions, such as is the massive body of work he left behind worth the gaps he left in his family? Balancing passion with family, or having equal passion for people as you do for art, I think is something a lot of people still struggle with.

But I don't think I would enjoy being a genius artist if I had no one to share it with. I found his relationship with Pollock very inspirational, since that kind of artist to artist friendship is critical. But the end of Herbert's life just seems... sad.