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Matthew took a circuitous route to design. Prepping in high-school for a medical career, he sat on the fence by enrolling in both advanced biology and studio art before fully switching to a fine art major with concentrations in psychology and literature, and graduated with a Bachelor's degree (honours) in Fine Arts in 1992 from the University of British Columbia. Having already started a one-man design firm in 1989 during university, Matthew joined DDB Canada's design division, karacters, in 1994, moving up the ranks to Associate Creative Director, focusing on consumer and retail design projects, including brand identity and packaging design for the likes of Reebok International, Clearly Canadian and Urban Fare.
Starting Subplot was a chance to team up with fellow ACD Roy White, and to create a firm that balances strategic and creative thinking to bring powerful, breakthrough concepts to life. And to do so in an environment that strips out the layers to let the time and attention be spent on the work, not the overheads. Matthew still gets a rush out of that "wow" moment when a big idea breaks through the clutter.
Matthew's passion and commitment to breakthrough creative has been recognized in local, national and international design shows and publications, including Graphis, New York Festivals, Mobius Awards, ID, Good Design Awards, Graphic Designers of Canada, Advertising and Design Club of Canada, Lotus Awards, Lurzer's ARCHIVE and the London International Advertising Awards. Matthew's work is also part of the permanent collections of the Chicago Athenaeum Museum and the Design Exchange.
"Advertising is a knock-knock joke. Design is a dialogue"
