Mountain Journal through its special continuing section called "Big Art of Nature" will showcase the best of wildlife art in all its forms, landscape painting and the talented people who create it.
Every few weeks, MoJo will also feature a magical realist painting by
an artist and invite readers to write a caption. Winners of the contest will receive a MoJo-Truth hat and have their names mentioned on site.
As part of the caption contest launch—go there by clicking here— MoJo welcomes one of our regional favorites Mimi Matsuda who
is letting readers muse on her work Wildlife, Watching. Here is the gist of a conversation we had
with the talented painter not long ago.
MOUNTAIN JOURNAL: Your paintings are a confluence of your
background—an interest in biology, your work as a naturalist-interpreter in
Yellowstone, and, of course, having a passion for artistic expression. Is
this the career path you imagined?
MIMI MATSUDA: Yes. My
profession as an artist is the perfect combination of my life passions. I
always had a keen interest in animals and the outdoors. When I was very
young, our family vacations were trips to the national parks and high mountain
lakes and rivers. Seeing ranger naturalists at work in the parks,
unraveling the stories of nature looked like the best profession out
there. Throughout my schooling, I followed the path of science and
biology because I wanted to know more about what made the world work and how
these animals live their lives. In my science classes, I took to the
skills of recording observations and sketching what I saw. There is
timeless power in this kind of data.
I realized that art is a visual form of communication that
speaks to the emotion of people, and that I could teach to a wider audience
through these paintings.
MOJO: Like a slough of other
talented contemporary artists in the West, you inject whimsy into your visual
narratives, often turning the tables on humanity so that it sees our
interaction with nature through the perspective of animals. What was the
catalyst for your bringing that point of view?
MATSUDA: After nearly a decade of working in the field as a
park ranger naturalist, I came in contact with thousands of visitors from
around the world. In all of my guided programs, I would bring my hand
drawn illustrations of scientific principles and points that I wanted my
audience to understand. For example, I drew the recipe for making a mud
pot in Yellowstone showing Sulfolobus, a thermophilic super star of the
Archaea group, soaking in hot water and wearing a Hawaiian shirt, while eating
sulfur and hydrogen sulfide gas, kicking out the byproduct of sulfuric acid,
which melts the surrounding rocks to make mud. Another illustration
showed the lake trout issue of Yellowstone Lake as a play on the Jaws movie
poster of the 1975 film, with a giant lake trout locked on to the unsuspecting,
small, surface swimming Yellowstone cutthroat trout. After showing these
pieces of art to countless people and hearing the laughter and seeing the
nodding heads, I saw how powerful a whimsical/humorous spin worked over all
ages and an international community. It is true, a picture is worth a
thousand words, and a humorous picture is even more effective.
Mimi Matsuda standing next to a larger than life-sized portrayal of ravens and bears watching Old Faithful erupt. The piece is part of an informational kiosk for Yellowstone Forever, located within eyeshot of the famous geyser. It is a promotion for the Yellowstone Art & Photogrraphy Center, (a mini-museum at Old Faithful devoted to showcasing visual celebratings of Yellowstone over the years). Posters of Matusuda's painting are available for purchase at the center, via her website and at the Old Faithful General Store. Photo by Erika Matsuda
MOJO: Who are some of the artists who influenced you
and others you currently admire?
MATSUDA: First off, my mother
was an art teacher and I was raised with creative outlets everywhere. My
great grandfather, William Muir, was a commercial illustrator in New England,
illustrating some of Webster’s Dictionary and Winchester Rifles. Growing
up I soaked up the art of great illustrators like Norman Rockwell, NC Wyeth,
and Maxfield Parrish. Rockwell really tapped into instantly conveying
human emotion. I loved Robert Bateman and Bev Doolittle – we had their
large picture books at home to marvel over. I admire Rosa Bonheur, French
animal painter from the 1800’s. Her success, while she was a living artist
inspires me. I also value the tremendous effect art has on conservation,
thinking of Thomas Moran’s art and William Henry Jackson’s photos working
to persuade Congress to preserve Yellowstone, the world’s first national
park. I greatly admire Montana artist DG House, whose friendship and
mentorship has been heartfelt and golden.
MOJO: Your artwork at Old Faithful will be viewed by
millions of people. Tell us about that commission and the piece that
resulted from it.
MATSUDA: My painting, “Worth
the Wait” was actually a piece of art I did for myself. It was not
commissioned. This is a piece that came from my years working in
Yellowstone and talking with visitors, answering questions and awarding Junior
Rangers their patches. Living in the park, you get to know the different
park culture of each region of Yellowstone. I wanted to pay homage to the
visitor family units and the awe-inspiring Junior Rangers. I enjoy how
they take to their new responsibilities so earnestly. I love how
focused and attentive the new grizzly Junior Ranger is in this piece, and how
like real life, there are always some kids that miss out on a natural wonder
like Old Faithful, by the distraction of an ice cream cone and some fantastic,
giant ravens strutting around. “Worth the Wait” has double the meaning:
The geyser is well worth the wait, and, the raven trio is zeroing in on the
tipping ice cream cone…maybe it will be worth their wait? Also, I wanted
to paint an image that was a near-universal image for visitors to the
park. It’s a world meeting place and if you are lucky, you will have had
an experience watching the famous Old Faithful geyser.
MOJO: What is it like to be a Yellowstone ranger, wearing
the proud green and gray of the National Park Service, and fielding questions
from tourists coming to the park as part of a great quest for connection, to the people they came with, and to nature?
MATSUDA: It was my childhood dream-come-true job. The
profession of the “National Park Ranger” is one of the most important roles of
the service. We are in the field, directly making friends for the
National Parks. I saw my profession as a park ranger naturalist as vital
in being a story teller for the park, a helpful resource and an igniter of
interest in the parks. I brought my passion and belief in the natural
world to work every day. A large part of my job was to listen and learn
from my visitors. Many times I would spend time just listening to people
recount their stories from the past. It was wonderful to share
experiences and to observe wildlife on guided hikes, along with my
groups. I was a ranger naturalist for so long that some of the children I
inducted into Junior Rangers came back to visit me as grown adults. It
made me feel so happy.
I feel so strongly about exposing children to nature as
early as possible. The national parks are the ultimate outdoor classrooms
and I hope our country never takes these sacred places for granted.
MOJO: You tap into the power
of wildlife iconography. Do you have any thoughts about why there is such
strong resonance with viewers?
MATSUDA: There are endless ways to portray wildlife through
art. Gather a group of artists together and have them paint the same
subject and I bet you’ll see dozens of different interpretations. My
wildlife art centers on drawing a direct link from animal to human
viewer. I think my art resonates because they recognize themselves, or
someone they know, in the art. I hear it time and again at art shows and
through email correspondence.
A painting of mine, “Wildlife, Watching”, has been a special
piece for people who are photographers. “Mountain Goat, Mountain Bike” is
a favorite of mountain biking parents introducing the sport to their
kids. “Birds of a feather” is a favorite of fly fishers who love to spend
time with friends on the water.
MOJO: Are you
reaching people?
MATSUDA: I enjoy hearing the
vocalized interpretations of the art while I am present at my art shows.
I hear the gamut from laughter to tears. One time I heard an older
gentleman who works as a counselor, tell me that my art of a polar bear riding
a fat tire snow bike signified the struggle to make a change and the shift of
life for people. He teared up as he explained the significance of this
painting. I see and hear young children gaze and speak up about what they
are seeing in the art. I watch families pull each other close to point
out loved ones they see in the art.
I have felt very lucky to have
had the time in the national parks to teach and show my art-illustrations to a
wide audience and to see what works. Not every artist has a chance to
test out their visual images in front of a varied audience. And I
appreciate my viewers who come to my shows and speak up about what art moves
them and what they would like to see. I have seen that people need
wildlife in their lives. It gives them strength, hope, makes them happy,
fills a need, and brings such joy. It is vital we make space for and
allow wildlife their own lives, so we can live our own happy lives. We
are definitely connected.
MOJO: You relate, then, to wildlife as fellow
sentient beings?
MATSUDA: The true push behind
my art is this: I put viewers in the
perspective of animals so that they realize that animals have a whole suite of
desires/goals/needs alike to ours. We are closer to other animals than we
realize. We are the same underneath. Their lives are as authentic
and as worthy as our own. It is not our species place to rank other
species as greater or lesser. It is my wish for humanity to be gracious
enough to allow all other species the right to live out their lives. Our
species would truly suffer from the loss of the animals from this planet.
I think this is a vital fight with unacceptable consequences.
