CH.89:  If you were to categorize or describe the style of your artwork, what would it be and why?

MM: Formally my focus is on sculpture and narrative filmmaking, whilst thematically I am interested and concerned with the ongoing ramifications of imperialism on the African continent.

CH.89: Where do you draw your inspiration from?

MM: Newspapers, news magazines, news websites, political and socio-economic theory; both historical and contemporary.

CH.89: Can you talk a little bit about what your creative thought process  is like when starting a new project/ piece of artwork?

MM: My work is principally conceptually driven, so the materiality of the work is what usually drives the planning or preproduction phase of a work. The form is political in most instances so finding the material to manifest the idea or sourcing a supplier who can produce my idea is the common start-point.

CH.89: Is there anything in particular that you would want people to take from your artwork?

MM: Not really, perhaps a sense of entertainment or of having been entertained and in so doing, questioning why they were entertained; to what end. Or even an uncanny sense from witnessing an assumption rendered in a manner that shifts the previous understanding of that  assumption or object.

CH.89: Can you talk a little bit about your lifestyle as an artist and what that is like?

MM: I work as a visual artist, and as a graphic designer and a television commercials director. Each different discipline informs each other in very oblique ways thematically, if at all, but on a technical/production solution level these careers inform and aide one another quite closely.

CH.89: When starting out an artistic task, do you think it is better to have a particular direction/set plan guiding your way? Or, is it better to act on impulse and go from there?

MM: It largely depends on what I am making; if it is a large, complicated steel sculpture that has to be designed digitally and then assembled from lasercut steel and welded – then yes set direction and planning is vital. If I am writing a short film or working on a more video art piece then there is a loose idea of the world I’m working in and towards but the completed work is found in-process as it were.

CH.89: What is one major lesson you’ve learned as an artist thus far?

MM: An artist needs to be constantly working and making things. This is not always easy or possible given cash flow, studio access and material costs, so lots of careful planning and a sense of business management is needed.

CH.89: Do you regard personal style & taste to be of highest importance?

MM: No, every human being has an opinion.

CH.89: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being an artist?

MM: Cash flow, having patience and most of all the huge disconnect between what you have an idea in your head and what ultimately is manifest in the world.

CH.89: What is one thing you love about being an artist?

MM: The world and everything in it ? now and throughout antiquity ? is content, plot and material to use, shape and bend however you want.

CH.89: Is there anyone in particular, any artist?s that inspire you in any way?

MM: Stan Douglas

CH.89: What do you think of technology in terms of being a useful tool for artists today?

MM: Technology is vital; from video editing to digital design to 3D printing and lasercutting.

CH.89: Do you think being an artist allows you to view the world differently from those who don?t follow creative paths?

MM: Perhaps, but creativity is a hugely wide and varied field.

CH.89: Do you enjoy traveling? If so, do you have a favorite city?

MM: Of course – Luanda, Angola.

CH.89:  Do you have a favorite author or book?

MM: Michael Herr

CH.89:  Any future goals or plans for your artwork?

MM: I am currently completing a short film, and working on a sculpture commission.

CH.89: What does being an artist mean to you?

MM: Work.

CH89: Any last words on the aesthetic of your artwork?

MM: Like most artists I am principally interested in articulating the world and context I live in with one eye on the world I would rather be living / what I would change about now.

All Theory. No Practice.

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