Matt Bodett

I only have one week left to meet my fundraising goal!! Can you help me?! I intend to repaint the Sistine Chapel ceiling by Michelangelo! You can read more about the project and donate by following the link below -

Thank you for the many people who have got me as far as I have, we are almost there!!

Please share this widely, that helps more than you know!!

Oak Leaves STRETCH GOAL! Through the kindness and generosity of so many, I met my initial goal! With the time remaining, I'm extending to a stretch goal of $10,000. Additional funds will help me fabricate storage crates for the paintings while I continue recreating the whole Sistine ceiling and allow me to pro...

One more week to dream big. Please share this widely and help me reach my fundraising goal! If you haven’t see it already, I have a dream project which is coming to fruition. In order to make it happen I need to raise some funds. Your assistance now will allow me to get this project well underway and will set this project on a successful path.

I intend to repaint the Sistine Chapel ceiling by Michelangelo, to scale. This is an “insane” task, and one which will change the way we talk about our historical heritage, especially in relation to the work I add atop the original. I want a genuine discussion about madness, about the experience of being human that are too often medicalized, dismissed, or seen as deviant.

The money raised for this project will allow me to purchase the very large quantity of materials, it will allow me to document the process, and it will allow me to fulfill a dream that was planted many years ago.

Please read more and donate using the link in the bio, or by cutting and pasting this into your browser: https://www.3arts.org/projects/oak-leaves/

Thank you!!

Don’t forget this opening reception tomorrow from 5-8pm:

Circle Contemporary Chicago

Artists:
Atlan Arceo-Witzl, Marcelo Añón, Ariée Carter, Raina Carter, Cole Fox, Phil Gazzolo, Ted Gram Boarini, Stefan Harhaj, Jaclyn Jacunski, Rebecca Kubica, Lawrence M., Carol Pyes, Brian Reed, Frances Roberts with Allison Wade, Annie Soler, Kelly Stone, Maria Vanik, Jean Wilson, Titus Wonsey, Christina Zion

What makes text textual? Who decided the arrangement of the alphabet? Is language a tool or/and a weapon? How does it shape our perceptions and realities? Who holds the authority to define words, to assign meaning and significance? Do words hold inherent power, or is their potency derived from the contexts in which they are employed? How does language construct and deconstruct identities? Can words both liberate and oppress? Who controls the narratives embedded within language? Can words transcend their literal meanings to become symbols of power, resistance, or oppression? Whose voices are amplified, and whose are silenced in transcendence? Can words capture the complexities of human experience, or do they inevitably fall short? Can words really be a salad? In what ways does language intersect with issues of identity, belonging, and exclusion? Is language a barrier or a bridge between individuals and communities? Whose linguistic realities are deemed acceptable, and whose are pathologized as deviant or abnormal? Does text inherently contain the essence of deviancy? Is a question only denoted by a mark?

My birthday is this weekend, in lieu of flowers I hope you’ll consider donating to my 3Arts project!

Oak Leaves Oak Leaves represents my most ambitious work to date, painting a replica of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. This idea and project are monumental in scale, so I plan to begin by focusing on two iconic figures, The Libyan and Cumaean Sibyls, from Michelangelo’s 15th century fresco in the Vatican. By...

As you have all probably noticed, I started a 3Arts project, a fundraiser, for an immense project just over a week ago. Within that time I have felt and seen such tremendous support, so much so that I am just shy of my goal, with a month left to raise the money. This means so much to me, and this project has been a lingering desire for so long. It feels wonderful to really get it started and to have you all supportive of this! Thank you!! If you still want to help me dream big you can copy this into your browser or see the link in my bio: https://www.3arts.org/projects/oak-leaves/

I am close to 1/3 of the way through this!! Please share if you can, and donate if you're able. This is a massive undertaking and I will need much support to realize BIG dreams

Oak Leaves Oak Leaves represents my most ambitious work to date, painting a replica of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. This idea and project are monumental in scale, so I plan to begin by focusing on two iconic figures, The Libyan and Cumaean Sibyls, from Michelangelo’s 15th century fresco in the Vatican. By...

Some of you saw the first test for a much larger project. I hung (with big help from Artruss - Eric and Sal) a painting from the ceiling to plan out how I could scale up and make a larger project. It worked beautifully and the next phase of that project is here!! If I can raise 2/3 of my project budget then 3Arts will offer a grant for the last third. This is a huge project and I will definitely need you help. Find out more about the project and donate using the link below! Thank you for your continued support for these big dreams!

Oak Leaves Oak Leaves represents my most ambitious work to date, painting a replica of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. This idea and project are monumental in scale, so I plan to begin by focusing on two iconic figures, The Libyan and Cumaean Sibyls, from Michelangelo’s 15th century fresco in the Vatican. By...

Okay, I need your help on this one!

In 2017 I completed a project, “we are, we are” through donations to my 3Arts Project. That performance was one of the best I’ve completed and I have a beautiful publication to show for it.

This year, I am back at it and going larger than I could imagine. I intend to paint the entire Sistine Chapel ceiling (yeah, that ceiling), to-scale, and exhibit it suspended from another ceiling (more on that later). This is no small task, so to accomplish this, I have broken the whole ceiling into 33 panels. I am asking for you to consider donating to my 3Arts project this year to help me complete 2 of those panels this summer!

The two panels I intend to complete will be 12 ft x 12 ft, and will represent the Libyan and Cumaean Sibyls painted by Michelangelo. Of course I intend to paint overtop, introducing my lived experiences with madness, and asking us to reconsider how our cultural pasts have been handed to us.

Your support on this would be very meaningful, and this project is a long time dream that is now becoming a reality.

You can find out more about the project and make a donation by visiting the 3Arts link provided.

Of course, if you are around the Chicago area during the summer I invite you to my studio to see these paintings in person! It will be a sight to see!

Thank you for your continued support and for believing in big things!

Oak Leaves Oak Leaves represents my most ambitious work to date, painting a replica of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. This idea and project are monumental in scale, so I plan to begin by focusing on two iconic figures, The Libyan and Cumaean Sibyls, from Michelangelo’s 15th century fresco in the Vatican. By...

Please help me, share this, like this, make it spread a little further than before.

In 2017 I ran a 3Arts project, a crowdfunding project that resulted in a beautiful performance series and publication. This year, I’m back at it and going larger than I could imagine. I intend to repaint the Sistine Chapel ceiling, to-scale, and exhibit it suspended from a ceiling (more on that later). Of course I will be overpainting the Michelangelo work with expressions of my own lived experience with madness, asking us to reconsider the cultural pasts we have been handed.

This is a massive undertaking, so I have broke the project into 33 panels, and I will complete 2 of them (12ft x 12ft) this summer. I hope you will consider donating to this project and help make some big things happen! The link to donate is in my bio!