Matthew Brown
Matt Brown is an artist and educator who has spent nearly a decade teaching art in his hometown of Orlando. Once known as the Candle Guy, he is now a certified K-12 art teacher who has taught hand-building ceramics, wheel-throwing, sculpture, drawing, and painting throughout his career – and believes his students are his greatest works of art.
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Teaching is a way for me to give back to the community that has supported my own creative journey throughout my life. I teach by example and view the studio as a collaborative space where everyone learns, grows and celebrates the life-changing power of art, together.
The lesson I hope every student learns is that they too can be inspired, shaped, and formed – just like our own creations, we can become our own works of art. By bringing their ideas to life, students realize their power to create real and beautiful things from nothing – sometimes just an idea, and maybe a handful of mud.
I’m both an artist and a teacher. As a teacher, I try to see my students in the same way they learn to see themselves: like a fresh ball of clay. As an artist, I try to help each ball of clay become their own little pot – and, as an art teacher, I hope that every little pot grows up to be a potter.