PULLMAN – The WSU Museum of Art proudly announces a fun and nostalgic exhibition of works: “The World of Mateo,” by local artist Matthew Leiker, on display May 18 to July 2. There will be an opening reception at 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 18, in the museum of art. All exhibits at the museum are free and open to the public.
“The World of Mateo” is filled with images of an American subculture known by no particular name but seemingly related to road and leisure culture, California style, album jacket graphics of the 50s and our affinity for Hawaiian island iconography. Leiker, a Spokane and Pullman artist, celebrates a time of Tiki lounges, drive-in theatre refreshment cartoons and lounge music that bubbles vibrantly between the hypnotic tones of the ukulele and vibraphone, all of which inspire his imagination to create work that is at once nostalgic and timelessly futuristic.
The exhibit features current works by this prolific artist along with a broad selection of record album covers, Tiki mugs and roadside ephemera from his vast personal collection.
Leiker grew up in northern California, attended Bridgewater State College just south of Boston in Massachusetts and recently moved from Pullman to Spokane. He cites, among his influences, trips to Disneyland as a child. As a young adult, he was employed at the park for seven years and met his wife while working in the Haunted Mansion.
The WSU Museum of Art is located on Wilson Road across from Martin Stadium in the Fine Arts Center on the Pullman campus. Summer gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 4 p.m., closed Sunday and Monday. For more information please contact the museum at 335-1910 or visit our website at http://museum.wsu.edu.