Hailing from Vancouver, Matthew will be joining Eden Studios as a resident artist in March, 2025. Matthew has selected three sculptural trees to plant on the grounds of Eden studios. Taken from his longstanding project in which he cultivates geometric topiary trees to create living shapes, he shared that his process will include surveying the land, listening to it, looking at it, and living it before placing the trees on the property. Once situated, he will share his experience working with these trees, the knowledge to care for them and the pruning techniques needed to maintain their shapes. He will also spend time in the studio working on a series of 28 wooden spoons that are being produced for a future event known as SOUP, where a diverse audience will be brought together to activate a space and create engaging conversation.  

BIO

Matthew Robertson (b.1980) is a visual artist and horticulturist who lives and works between Vancouver and Chilliwack, BC. Wood has been a central medium of Robertson’s practice, producing installations, inanimate objects, furniture and structures. Since 2012, Robertson has focused on geometric topiary tree production on farmland, fabricating a palette of living shapes. He is deeply interested in juxtaposing these forms into landscape environments to distract from the everyday. Themes of time and patience, craft, and DIY culture echo through his work and satisfy his need to create.