Born and raised in southern Ohio, I was influenced at an early age by my Appalachian grandmother’s stories which really fired my imagination. I developed a love of history, legend and the supernatural, rooted in the Scots-Irish tradition. After a long career in health care, I returned to school and earned a BFA in painting. Now I give workshops in Celtic Art and I also organized a touring exhibit called "American Celtic" which included five artists. I have participated in many exhibitions in the US, Canada and Europe and illustrated CD covers, posters and websites. I particularly love teaching students about Celtic Art and I recently wrote and illustrated a children's book called "Little Town of Spirals". I’ve also taught Celtic art classes at John Campbell Folk School, Common Ground on the Hill and Milwaukee Irish Fest Summer School. I play flute and concertina with the band, Silver Arm, and for fifteen years was the artistic director of the Cincinnati Celtic Festival which I founded in 1992.

For more information visit my website at www.matyiart.com or email me at matyi@fuse.net.