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ST. GEORGE — The DOC-Utah film festival wrapped up this weekend at Dixie State — and, as expected, a Washington County artist stole the show.
Matt Clark's medium is scrap metal. His paintbrush is a welding torch. And each piece Clark forges is a testament to how he forged a new life after a tragic accident.
"I was mesmerized about that magical power to glue metal," Clark said.
I was mesmerized about that magical power to glue metal,
–Utah artist Matt Clark
Matt Clark was eight years old when he first saw that "magical power." By age 15, he bought his own welding machine and embarked on projects such as trailer hitches and wood stoves. But he really had his sights set on being a rodeo champion. He made the national high school finals as a junior, and figured he would do really well in his senior year.
"About a month before that rodeo season started, I was injured when a truck rolled over me," Clark remembers. "I was working on my own truck."
He suffered a paralyzing neck injury. He spent eight months in the hospital, and more time in rehab. Although he regained some mobility, Clark says he was still very weak — barely able to push his own wheelchair.
Doctors told him his life was over.
"On the exit interview, the doctor said ‘We recommend you find a rest home to check into, and if you get that good of care, you'll probably live three to five years,'" Clark said.
That was the motivation Clark needed.
Instead of checking into a rest home, he and his family built a makeshift rehab — on their back porch. Over time, he gained more strength, and picked up a welding torch again. And so, Clark welded on the side for several years until his life changed again.
"I picked up some scrap and made a little dinosaur. People liked it and I thought I'd try doing more of this," Clark said. "I stumbled into art kind of accidentally, I guess."
Clark has been a full-fledged metal sculptor since the mid 90's - creating art out of discarded metal pieces. His work can be found all over St. George. And it's the focus of the new documentary, "Pieces of the Soul".
"All my pieces will have at least one thrown away piece. There's a full-size horse here in ancestor square, the painted pony — it has 850 thrown away pieces in it," Clark said. "So I bring those objects together, to make a new entity — kind of mirrors what I had to do — I had to become something much different than I thought I was going to be."
St. George mayor Dan McArthur proclaimed last Thursday, September 6th, as "Matt Clark Day", in coordination with the documentary release.
Contributing: Keith McCord
