Matte Stephens does the cover of Eye Weekly.

This brand-new piece is one of the first editorial jobs we got for Matte. I was thrilled to see what he did. It’s pure Matte.

If an artist tightens up quite a bit for their commissioned jobs, and looses what makes them special, that’s a serious problem. This will clearly not be a problem for Matte. Some artists that are primarily fine artists and surface design artists (that is, they do paintings and art for products) have a difficult time transitioning to the very lucrative, yet completely different world of editorial (books, magazines). So (I’m repeating myself now) I’m happy that Matte was able to stay delightful. Prognosis: a great editorial career in addition to his existing great other work.

Why is editorial great for artists? It such an amazing discipline; it forces you to draw and design a myriad of images, stuff you would never draw, or think you can’t draw. Therefore, your repertoire is increased and your imagery does not get tired.

Art directors: give him a try! Plus, he’s the world’s most charming and polite Southern gentleman (now living in Portland, OR).