You all know Mat Hoffman the BMX legend. Now meet Mat Hoffman the artist. I had no idea Mat was even dabbling in the paint—what with all the time he spends unconventionally flying the friendly skies—until he started posting these rad little time lapses on his Instagram [see below]. So I invaded his Oklahoman airspace to ask a few questions about his recent works.
When did you pick up the brush and how did you settle upon your subject matter and medium?
I first picked up a brush after I got ran over by a semi truck in 2007. I couldn’t ride for four years. My brain was spinning and I needed to find something passively risky that demanded focus. I never painted and I still don’t think I can … I just do? I first started with old poems I wrote and tried to paint the words, like “A Day in the Life,” “Instinct,” “Dream,” and “F-It.” Only “F-It” wasn’t a poem—it was from walking around in airports and hearing too much CNN during election time.
Then I stopped for a while and built my house. That was my canvas. Then I built a pool that reflects the sunset, which makes some cool patterns and brings the art show to me. I was pretty content with that and would just take photos and didn’t think I could improve on nature. I’ve made a few books for friends of these photos. Then I had a few opportunities to make some paintings for charities and felt this was a part of my brain I needed to flex and workout more, so I started this bird series, reincarnating my family as birds. The Cassowary is my wife Jaci. The geese jumping out of the tree are our kids. The bearded vulture on cardboard is my dad—coming from nothing and making something.
Are you a fellow bird nerd like Tremaine? If so, how many binoculars do you own?
Jeff has multiple hidden nerds inside him. He’s winning me over on being a fish nerd, too. Maybe that will be my next subject. Birds and fish are like aliens that are right in front of us and we act like it’s normal. I don’t have any binoculars, but I do have bird simulators: three flying machines, or power paragliders; a wingsuit; a BASE rig; four parachutes; three paragliders; and I like to act like my bike flies.
On a scale of 1-10, how much of an influence has the fine art of Tremaine had on you? 1 being “A lot” and 10 being “Everything I am today, I owe it all to him."
Forty-three. I’m not sure what that means, but it reps the unknown, the arts, and the culture that Jeff has been one of our greats in. His endless creative energy and talent with nothing too sacred to shit on has secured the limitless world in which we live. Jeff’s a real painter, though. I’m just acting like one.
How long does it take for you to do a painting from start to finish?
Right now I’m painting with acrylics, so it seems like a race. Maybe a few hours, some have taken days, but it seems like the ones that take longer I don’t really like as much. I have an oil painting I started eight years ago and it’s still not finished. I made a real size condor, like 9-foot-plus, with seven different canvases that I bolted together so they move and you can change the wing positions and make it fly or land or soar. I like that one—#birdnerd.
Any noteworthy collectors of your work yet? Big time gymkhana guy Ken Block used to buy a lot of Tremaine’s work in the ’90s.
I’ve never sold anything. I gave my last collection away to friends for special occasions. Tony Hawk and his fiancé Catherine asked to buy this “Birdman Yin-Yang” I did a couple weeks ago. That’s pretty big time! I’ll just give it to them. But now I’m doing this interview so the price just went up. Thanks! Do you want one?
Fuck yes! I would love one. I don’t know if you do “made to order,” but I’m a big fan of the blue-footed booby. On that note, occasionally an artist will try to grow and evolve, even though this can backfire, like, think Danzig when he tried to be all evil dance industrial. What possible direction do you see your work going in, or are you content in the avian world?
I don’t know. I’ll just paint whatever I want. This is a selfish art. I do it for me. I love landscapes and sunsets, water, flight... I’m comfortable dreaming with birds right now, but I feel a change coming. It will be something I don’t think I can do. Facing my fears, even in art, builds my brain and makes me feel progressive. Tim Kerr called me up and asked if I’d do one to go along with a show he’s having at the Rosa Parks Museum in Alabama. I think it just opened. This piece made me think a little outside my birdbrain and made it real. Tim said, “Your name here.” So I concurred. You have to—it’s Tim Kerr!
Caged birds as pets: gross human misconduct or might makes right?
Fuck that. It’s a lot nicer if you paint them.
Anything else you’d like to add?
A couple weeks ago, I rode the big air ramp at Woodward West. I didn’t have brakes, so I had to just let it ride and take on whatever was coming. So, when I cleared the launch, I went about 20-ish feet. When I did, I looked at the view and the control I had, and thought, “This is rad, but I’m so comfortable and I could go so much higher.” Then I saw a photo and realized it was pretty high. So I thought, “I either walk away now or I max this ramp out,” which I think would be in the thirties. I’ve been to the ER a couple times already this year and I was questioning my decision-making when I’m in my riding trance, so I walked away. I needed to prove I could walk away and think about it. It has been haunting me ever since and I need to ride it again. I have thought about it and come to this conclusion why I may feel so comfortable in such intense situations now: The two things I’ve been doing in my life that are different than in the past are flying wingsuits and painting. Both take incredible concentration and you have to feel it and make the right decision and trust it. This random cross training is making me psychologically stronger to ride better and challenge myself greater.
birdcollection from Hoffman Bikes on Vimeo.
Comments