Matthew McDole

Louisville, KY

(b. 1987) Bedford, KY

Matthew McDole was raised on a farm in Bedford, Kentucky, and currently resides in Louisville, Kentucky. He is an illustrator, painter, designer, and skateboarder. His work explores love, mystery, and the macabre. 

He mixes tattoo flash-art style with pop culture references, seamlessly blending deadpan humor with a modest amount of melancholy. McDole’s clean, graphic imagery expresses a kind of be-happy, life-is-meaningless attitude not too dissimilar to the philosophic theory of Absurdism popularized by the French philosopher and author Albert Camus. Followers of Absurdism accept that there is no meaning and revel in the absurdity of life, leading to a kind of joy. This sentiment closely parallels with McDole's own personal outlook.

Ultimately, however, McDole is a romantic and this feeling of insignificance is a cause for celebration and reason to enjoy life. He believes people should make the best of their situations in the brief amount of time they have. 

The imagery in his work references all manner of symbols from intimate to absurd. His designs reflect personal experiences and interests that highlight joys found in life both large and small. These things are great reminders that things aren’t always so serious, and we don’t always need to sweat the small stuff.