About Matthew
Matthew Gray spent a lot of time growing up visiting the midcoast of Maine. He left his job in Massachusetts in the early 2000s to follow his dream by moving out to Monhegan Island for a few summers to learn how to paint with such artists as Ted Tihanksy, Caleb Stone, and Allison Hill. Matthew gained a foundation of plein-air painting, which he brought to Round Pond and continued to build upon.
Matthew the painter can be seen painting every day around the village and displaying his work by the ice cream window by Granite Hall Store, on the walls of King Ro Market, and along the stone wall by Muscongus Bay Lobster during the warmer months. While practicing his art in Round Pound, his work has spread to homes all over the world. One of his paintings of Pemaquid Lighthouse made it to the Caspian Sea by way of the U.S. ambassador’s residence in Baku, Azerbaijan.
It’s simply the way light reacts to a surface that excites him most about painting, other than catching the modern daily moments of the village. He also works from old black and white photos of Round Pond.
Matthew has painted many commissions, from cats, dogs, horses, cows, chickens, goats, houses, boats, and people. He has taken on many challenges over the years and plans to continue as long as he can hold a brush.
In addition to painting, Matthew writes songs, plays piano and guitar, and he is working on writing, directing, and producing plays for a group he has dubbed the Round Pond Community Theater Group. He is learning to sail, also.
The last time Matthew saw his teacher Ted Tihanksy, he was standing on the wharf on Monhegan and Ted was leaving on the boat back to Port Clyde. He kept hearing Ted say, over and over again, “Keep painting! Keep painting! Keep painting!” as the boat steamed away.