Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Matt Johnson’s Artist Sketchbook and Workspace.

For Keepsake Artist, Matt Johnson, sketching—whether digitally or on paper—has always been a part of his creative process. “I draw on paper and on my tablet monitor,” he said. “The monitor has a stylus which allows me to control pressure and draw or sculpt. I’ve started drawing more this way recently. Although sketching by hand is more natural and I can sketch ideas anywhere.”

Various Sketches by Matt Johnson

Besides digitally sketching, Matt also is one of the artists in the Keepsakes Studio who digitally sculpts. “Digital is great because of the ability to modify and change things quickly,” he said. “You can scale, mirror, and create forms that are perfect shapes. You can also rapidly change forms. You can work on an area that you are trying to make look perfect when it is very small in size.”

Digital sculpting works great for Matt, but he’s also interested in trying his hand at a more traditional path. “The downside [to digital] is it takes a long time to get use to the scale of working in the computer,” he said. “I have never sculpted traditionally, but I think it would benefit me to begin as a hobby. Traditional sculpting allows you to see the ornament for what it is.”

So what are Matt’s favorite ornaments he’s worked on recently? “I think in 2019, it would be the ‘The Merriest House in Town’ featuring The Peanuts Gang®,” he said. “I loved Snoopy as a kid and even had this cool Snoopy hat with a visor built in. It’s also just really fun working on over-the-top crazy Christmas houses! This year, it was also exciting to have Saint Louis finally win the Stanley Cup. Since I live in Missouri, we couldn’t help but catch the fever. I still owe my neighbor the 2019 Stanley Cup® Champions hockey ornament I designed.”

Just like many Keepsake fans he knows, Matt enjoys a little bit of collecting in his spare time. “I like to collect unique, vintage or odd objects,” he said. “Some are at my desk—like a cat sculpture I got at our last office white elephant gift exchange—we call him Catrick Mahomes. Hoping it brings us good luck! I also have a military toy on my desk—my head was scanned and used for the sculpt.”

At Matt Johnson’s Desk