Art Of Our Culture With Matthew Heck

Article By: Miss Judy

atthew Heck grew up in the small city of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada, which m is the land of maple syrup, beavers, the Loonie, plaid jackets, and hockey. Winters started early and went long, generally from October to

May. It was not uncommon to have stretches of several weeks -49°F when Matt was growing up. He grew up skateboarding and snowboarding and started riding motorcycles pretty young.

During those long winters, you had to find things to keep yourself occupied. Matthew says that art was never a choice that he consciously made. It’s just always been a part of who he kid. When he was just six, he would draw his family members as cartoon characters.

Today his mind is constantly coming up with ideas for art projects. He stews over a new idea until he is finally ready to sketch them and bring them to life.

Matthew is blessed/ plagued with the inability to sit still. He is constantly looking at things and try’s to determine what something could be or how he could turn it into something else.

Matt describes himself as having an addictive personality and says that his vices are motorcycles and art. Once he starts working on

a project, he becomes consumed with it and becomes wholly engulfed in the process. Inspiration for Matt comes from many different places. He loves tattoo-inspired imagery, especially the clean lines and bold colors from traditional American tattoos. He is also heavily influenced by Art Nouveau and Renaissance art which is apparent in his work.

Matt and his brother had a set of 50cc dirt bikes that they rode around their family farm. He never stopped riding and eventually merged his two passions. In his 20s, he started customizing bikes. He started building Café racers and brat bikes and then found the chopper community, which seemed to really speak to him.

Matthew was drawn to the motorcycle community because it is like skate and snowboarding. He says that the bike and art communities are all about being a part of a larger community while you are still individual and are allowed to have your own expression. For him, it is about utilizing the means, skills, and abilities you possess to help each other out. He feels his artwork goes well with this culture because it is all about turning something that is mass-produced into a one-off. He says that when you pay attention to small details, your art becomes an expression of your personality.

Right now, Heck’s preferred medium is enamel paints because it covers so well and levels to a glasslike appearance on helmets and tanks. He feels that he still has a lot to learn about the limits of the paints and how much he can level them. Matt recently started working with automotive painting and has begun to do some airbrushing, which he really enjoys. Airbrushing has allowed him to do 70’s style chopper paint and complex lowrider panel style graphics. This takes a lot of patience and attention to detail, which he likes about this art form.

When asked what sets his art apart from others in the industry, Heck isn’t sure what it might actually be, but he does hope people will see his attention to detail, his passion, and the unique style he has developed. He is very critical of his work and makes sure nothing leaves until he is completely stoked on the piece.

Today Matthew is the artist/creator behind Frontiersmen Studio. It is a one-man endeavor that he started in 2018. It has been a part-time gig for Heck for the last three years.

However, he recently made Frontiersmen Studio his fulltime work, which he tells CS would not have been possible without the encouragement and support of his amazing wife.

As for the future, Matthew would love to open a community garage with a storefront. He envisions it to be a place where you can rent a space, work on your bike, and have the help of everyone else in the community garage. It would have a full paint booth and all the tools you would need to tear down and build up your bike. Of course, Heck would run a weekly art night where artists could get together to learn and maybe collaborate on projects.

Matthew feels extremely humbled and lucky that his art has allowed him to do the things he has done, meet the people, and make new friendships within the motorcycle community. Among his many accomplishments, Matthew has created the trophy helmet for the 2021 Biltwell People’s Champ. He painted a sissy bar and an art piece for the 2021 Motorcycle Art Extravaganza and created a helmet for Born Free. He is honored that he is trusted to bring someone’s vision to life and is extremely grateful for everyone that has commissioned his work. When asked, Matthew says that he is super stoked to see what the future has in store for him and is looking forward to working with new customers and pushing himself as much as he can.

For more about Matthew Heck, you can visit his website: www.frontiersmenstudio. com or his Instagram at @ frontiersmenstudio_.com