Deeply frustrated by the impact of corporate and political chaos upon our environment and society, Zoe Matthiessen rants with her dip pen in hopes of raising awareness, while reminding us of the natural beauty in our local area.
The walls of the New Haven Lawn Club will display over 50 of Matthiessen’s illustrations, presented in recycled and vintage frames. Many of her works address topics that impact us all such as plastic pollution, environmental deregulation, corporate greed, deforestation, and corrupt politicians. Also on display, to lighten the mood, will be carefully rendered illustrations of the woods of East Rock, local waterfronts and other natural scenery within or near New Haven.
Zoe is a self-taught artist living in New Haven. She was recently accepted into the Society of Illustrators and American Illustration. She regularly contributes to both The American Bystander and to The Nation, has produced work for The Environmental Defense Fund, and has held her spot “Ecocide” in the Independent for the past two years. She was selected as one of the “Top Ten Emerging Artists of 2018” by Art New England magazine. Her work also made the cover of the March/April issue of the print publication. She is currently producing an environmental children’s book which will be released in the fall of 2020 and will be teaching two art courses at the Yale Peabody Museum beginning Sept 2019.
As an activist, Zoe organizes an environmentalist group, The Pick-Up Artists. Together, they target parks and waterfront locations where litter is abundant, clean it up, then sketch, ink, paint and photograph the places they’ve transformed.
NATURE: BETRAYED / PORTRAYED will be on display from April 30 to June 30. The opening reception will be May 7 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the New Haven Lawn Club, 193 Whitney Ave., New Haven. To view more of Zoe’s artwork click here and to learn about The Pick-Up Artists here.
