The Abbey Church, Joseph Matose 2015

While sitting between Head of School Matt Walter and his wife Paula, and PAS alum Jamie MacGuire ‘70 accompanied by Michelle Coppedge, on Saturday, August 17, in the grand ballroom of Rosecliff Mansion in Newport, I was suddenly mesmerized by the concept of scale, specifically scale in art. That very day was the 50th anniversary of the opening of the 1974 show called Monumenta 50. Everything about that “happening” (for lack of a better word, though probably outdated by 1974) was monumental, involving earth-moving equipment, the pouring of concrete pads, the trucking of heavy art, and the lifting of said heavy art by construction cranes. Heavy metal, heavy fabric (courtesy of Christo), heady ideas. Weeks earlier I had begun to wrap my head around the much simpler artworks created by this month’s Artist of the Abbey, the late Joseph S. Matose IV (1948 – 2022), who was also an Oblate of Portsmouth Abbey. The contrast in scale between his works and the works in Monumenta couldn’t be more striking, almost like being back in art history class instructed to compare and contrast Painting A with Painting B, or Sculpture A with Sculpture B.

Joseph MatoseThe works by Joseph Matose in the Abbey’s collection are mostly pen and ink drawings, simply but handsomely framed, along with at least two abstract oil paintings. Several of the works are xerographic prints. The subject matter of the drawings ranges from closeups of individual structures to wide expanses of vistas, typically of local interest. He developed and expanded upon a technique of drawing, perhaps first encountered in his early studies at the Rhode Island School of Design and later at the University of Rhode Island (Class of 1986), whereby a student is asked to begin a sketch from life, be it a still-life, a portrait or a land- or seascape. But instead of drawing and then lifting the pencil or pen occasionally from the paper, the image is actually composed of mostly one continuous line, curving back on itself, crossing over itself, until all of the salient features of the subject are rendered according to the desire of the artist. This technique can be very successful in rendering trees and foliage, water features, skylines with cloud formations, and even human facial features. An image presented in this style tends toward the abstract rather than being naturalistic or realistic.
The Pell Bridge, Newport​A Matose Family story relates that he executed his first drawing at age two and still had it many years into his career. Known as the Artist of Newport, it is obvious from his choice of subject matter that he also spent a good deal of time on the grounds of Portsmouth Abbey, as well. His landscapes and seascapes often include one or more of the ubiquitous seagulls who make their home on or near Aquidneck Island, often rendered simply with two quick flicks of the pen. Certainly, he became acquainted with the monks, and most likely Fr. Peter Sidler and Fr. Julian Stead, artists in their own right, who probably encouraged Joe, as they did so many others. Another influence may have been Oblate Ade Bethune since Joe’s illustrations soon appeared in the newspaper of the Catholic Worker Movement. I would like to imagine that it was Dorothy Day’s statement, “God meant things to be much easier than we have made them,” which inspired Joe to maintain the simplicity of his artwork.
Portsmouth Mill, from 2012Two of Joe’s drawings of the Abbey grounds show the position of our wind turbine as a feature. Two other sketches elicit interest and positive comments from guests and visitors. It is a pair of drawings which depict two separate Aquidneck windmills, forerunners of the modern turbine, which attest to the centuries-old awareness of the harnessing of wind power which originates in the ocean breezes. The first mill, a four-bladed design, was constructed on the Portsmouth Abbey property near Lehigh Hill (cf. The Current, October 16, 2022), but relocated years later to the Prescott Farm Museum, south of the Abbey on West Main Road. A second structure with 8 blades, or vanes, an 1810 smock mill, known as Boyd’s Windmill, or Boyd’s Wind Grist Mill, was also relocated from its original site in Portsmouth. Originally sited at Mill Lane and West Main Road, it was moved beginning in 1995 to Paradise Valley Park on Prospect Avenue at Paradise Avenue, Middletown. Among the 33 windmills once located in our area, these are the only ones we have seen to date which were memorialized by Joe.
Boyd’s Mill, from 2014Joe was a lifelong resident of the area. For 35 years he served as a government employee at the Naval War College, a position that provided him with the opportunity to pursue his art and to share it with so many of the organizations and people with whom he came into contact. He gave freely of his time and talent, for example being named the Volunteer of the Year at the Forest Farm Assisted Living facility in Middletown. He not only donated many of his works to furnish office and reception spaces and as offerings in charity auctions, but also gave his time and talent providing free art workshops and classes for the residents.

Portsmouth Abbey vistaAt the time of his death, it was suggested that memorial contributions be made to The Our Lady of Guadalupe Men’s Home in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Founded in Rhode Island and operated by the Confraternity of Penitents (CFP), the organization was a favorite project of our late Fr. Julian Stead and is a testimony to the symbiotic relationship enjoyed over many decades by the Portsmouth monks and the local community. In this particular instance, it was the simplicity and beauty of art that strengthened the connections between so many people.

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Brother Sixtus Roslevich takes up again here our monthly column on “Artists of the Abbey”, which will remain a feature of our upcoming issues throughout the publication year. The recurring column focuses on artists whose work has shaped monastic life here at Portsmouth.