Mateo Dineen is an artist from San Francisco who now lives in Berlin, Germany. His art process begins with finding interesting, unusual objects that are sold at flea markets around Berlin. He takes these home with them and gives them a second chance at life as an art work by covering his found objects with pop surrealist paintings of cute monsters, appealing aliens and lovable robots. From old picture frames to suitcases and tea trays; if an object captures Dineen’s imagination, he takes it under his wing.
Dineen’s art is delightful in that he creates personified creatures that express human emotions through an inhuman form. Although each character has a personality of its own, pretty much anyone can relate to his characters because of their human emotions. While his little beasties are nearly human in their personality, they are anything but human in their form. Dineen takes inspiration from the old, lost, broken or weathered objects that he finds at flea markets and incorporates the aesthetic of these objects into his paintings. Rust, scruffy fur, worn out buildings and weathered wood are all textures in Dineen’s art works that are inspired by the world around him and his experiences in Berlin. His enjoyment of his own environment is apparent in his character’s responses to the environment that the artist has created for them – he expresses his own comfort and joy at his circumstances through each of his characters.
Influences of the great artists Dr Seuss, Jim Henson and Tim Burton can be seen in Mateo Dineen’s art works in his character designs and aesthetic style, and like the characters that were created by those artists, Dineen’s creatures appeal to audiences both young and old. You can buy prints, t-shirts, puzzles and books of Mateo Dineen’s art online at Zozoville or see more work by this artist on his Facebook page.
