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Whatcha Making? Not_Hideuhs

Photos By Kayleigh Omang

Matthew Wuorinen, better known as “Not_Hideuhs” is a one-of-a-kind sticker artist. Making the transition from street art and murals to lively stickers and hosting a weekly Draw Club, he’s established himself as an artistic force in the community.

Tell us a bit about yourself and what you create

I am a self-taught artist that has made art my primary focus over the last six years. I didn’t know what I “want to be as a grown-up.” I went to college for advertising and during my senior year, after making the Dean’s List, I realized it wasn’t something I was passionate about and decided to find a new path.What I create could be viewed as a journal. I can look at any work of art I have made and tell the story behind it came to be.

How did you get into your particular art?

I used to buy sticker sheets of my art in bulk, but the annoying part was having to cut out every design on the sticker sheet. I saved those trimmings and decided to do some collage work with them.

Where did you get your name “Hideuhs” from?

It’s a triple entendre;

1. Hide Uhs (hide us) is how I approached placing stickers of my art worldwide while being anonymous

2. When asked if I wanted paper or plastic while getting groceries I would say, “uhhhhh” and then always get paper. It was an ugly habit I noticed.

3. A relationship I was in ended poorly and it was all my fault, if I would have been more mature in the moment and owned my mistakes I could have fixed it. I was left with ugly thoughts and feelings and I used art to cope with how I felt.

What is one of your favorite pieces you’ve created? Why?

Commissions for people’s pets, it’s great seeing their reaction. It’s hard capturing the uniqueness of a pet but when it’s done properly, it’s a real work of art.

What is a word that best describes you?

Altruistic

How do you stay inspired to create?

Visiting family and spending time in nature always helps me. Disconnecting from social media is very important for the mind.

What has been the most challenging and most rewarding things about doing this work?

I know the price range of mass-producing stickers, I see a lot of people paying more than they should for stickers. Stickers are a passion for me, they’re not just a promotional tool.

Seeing strangers laugh at my crazy ideas for stickers is so rewarding. I’m consistently thrown off by the people that buy my work and I love that.

What advice would you give to someone interested in starting a handmade business?

Learn business ASAP

Where can people find your work?

I’ll be at Unglued starting 4/20/20

You also host Draw Club. Tell us a bit about that and how people can get involved.

It’s nice and you should follow @drawclub2.0 on Instagram. It’s a meetup for creatives with no structure.

How can our community help your business grow?

Just support young local artists, we don’t need any more hay bail or bison pics, no offense to anyone that rocks that avenue, but we are trying to progress here.

Written by Josiah Kopp

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