‘I’m a human collage’

Press, 20 December 1989, Page 25

‘I’m a human collage’

Finding one artistic label to describe Matthew Robertson is impossible. Performing artist comes close, but falls short because it does not include sculptor, painter, poet, ceramics artist, mask maker and teacher.

His talents, spread over a number of disciplines, are inter-related. “I love to work at them all. It’s the way I am.

“I work in a spiral. First thing in the morning is a good time for paper work, so I write then. Later on I might want to do something more physical, so I move on to wood sculpture. Then, if the mood took me, I’d do some painting. In the evening I move back to poetry, probably with music.

Robertson’s forte is picking up the rhythm of music and putting words to it. Here his acting ability comes to the fore. His poetry can be performed, rather than read, with music or unaccompanied. Sometimes he performs, complete with masks for added dramatic effect, in evening suit, tuxedo and top hat. Robertson has played some major dramatic roles, from Shakespearean to Quasar in “Out of this World” with the Southern Ballet Company.

His poems are like mini plays, he says. They almost ask to be acted. Some, such as “High Fashion,” have been made into videos. This peom is about an impish

courtship with a mannequin. “Baby I’ve been walking Past you every day For a week now, and I’ve seen Those faces you bring; The colour of your hair, Clothes that you wear, The way people stare. I know you’re the special one All over the street, And one day baby, I’m really going to meet you." So far he is an unwritten poet — he remains faithful to the oral tradition —- but this will change with the publication of his first book of poems, “Stellar Haze,” which he has yet to illustrate.

The threat to both the natural and man-made environment are frequent themes. He is moved by beautiful things, strength of character, love and commitment, the landscape, the hole in the ozone layer, the nuclear threat, catastrophes such as the cyanide spillage at Bhopal and the dumping of nuclear waste near Santa Fe in the United States

His lyrics can be hardhitting, psychological, satirical, political or funny. His approach is caring rather than didactic; humorous rather than grim.

Humorous props are part of his act. There is his inflatable guitar, his “Matt”-er-horn, clockwork toy, even a gold replica Van Gogh ear added col-

our to his performances. “I’m a human collage, a sculpture to hang things on,” he says.

His masks are sculptural and can extend the meaning of a poem. Sometimes he writes a poem to fit a mask.

Robertson returned to Christchurch after 10 months in the United States in time to begin the third term at Four Avenues School where he teaches art and drama. His work, he feels, is more widely appreciated overseas than at home, where New Zealanders’ thinking is “anaesthetised by European and American culture.” In New York he became an overnight celebrity. The response from audiences was “addictive,” a wonderful feeling. He would be stopped in

the street and complimented on his performances. Several times he was likened to Lenny Bruce for his ability to stir audiences.

American audiences, especially, are more attuned to accepting new and different materials and ways of presentation, he says. He travelled to places with deep-seated environmental threats where people are receptive to his eco/poetry/ theatre.

He enjoyed the same response in Europe in 1984, arriving there with only 30 guilders to his name, spending a year living the life of a wandering minstrel, performing in pubs, clubs and restaurants.

Now that he is “pushing 40,” Robertson feel she is spreading himself too

thinly between art and teaching. He has taught at Four Avenues since 1980, interspersed with trips overseas for new inspiration. He enjoys teaching — giving structure to students to help them reach into themselves so that they can find their creative impulses and tune them into self-ex-pression.

Teaching, to him, is a logical extension of his art. But the time is coming when he needs to make a stand and make his art work. He wants to succeed as a performance artist with or without music, in New Zealand. Robertson invites the public to a “dangerous” evening listening and sharing poetry at the State Trinity Centre on December 22 at 8 p.m. He will read his poetry to a guitar accompaniment provided by Zoki Donkov. This will be followed by poetry readings by Stefan Alderson accompanied on the guitar by Alistair Scott.

The “danger” comes later in the evening when other poets will have the chance to read their poetry to the audience. According to Robertson, it is dangerous and takes courage for closet poets to give their works a public airing. Robertson’s theme is Christmas, with emphasis on the ideals associated with the season being spread throughout the year.