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Mathias would have been showing a few of his own pieces, had he gotten them in on time. As it was, he figured he'd at least see what a few of his fellow students were coming up with, plus a few other local artists. He'd actually cleaned up, deciding to wear a decent button down shirt and slacks to the gallery.

He'd walked around for a little bit, before returning to the main section of the gallery. He realized it looked a little different. The throne, which had once been empty - was now occupied. Walking over, he climbed up the stairs and reached out, tapping the poor girl on the shoulder.

"Hey, everybody else might be too nice to say anything, but I think you might not want to sit on the art." He chuckles a bit, looking the girl over as she sat there. She was cute, though her dress screamed that he should probably avoid trying to draw her attention least she get the wrong idea.

But it was probably already too late for that. Regardless of that though, he was a decent guy, and that meant making sure she was okay. "Though I'll admit, some of these pieces make me want to take a nap too."

"No worries, just don't want you to get tossed out." He motioned with his hand toward one of the side galleries. "Walk with me? It might help you stay awake." Another slight chuckle, and he took a step or two away from the throne and waited to see if she walked with him.

Mathias laughed and shook his head. "I've been keeping myself somewhat busy. I'm trying to build my portfolio a bit with more portrait pieces, you may or may not have seen my adds on the bulletin boards around campus - the one looking for models." He let his eyes wander her figure again and made a mental note that she might make a good model if she expressed the interest, but he wasn't about to go crazy with it.

"I'm more of an abstract and surrealist kind of artists, but a lot of my professors basically told me I wasn't going to get very good marks this coming semester without a more... balanced... portfolio."

"Mathias," he took the proffered hand as was customary. "As far as models. Pretty much anyone who can sit still for a few hours and look pretty. So you more than fit the bill if you can stay still." He smirked at her. She was fishing - so he "took" the bait. A compliment here and there tended to make life easier anyway. He was somewhat thankful that it was a LARP day for Cora - else this would have been incredibly awkward. "I do both clothed and nude though, so it depends on the comfort level of the model."

As it was, he hoped she didn't take this as him expressing anything more than strictly business. It was bad enough having to shoot down some of his Negaverse superiors who seemed to be interested in getting to "know" him more deeply.

Looking at the Canvas he shakes his head. "Naw, I use spray paint usually." He smirks. "It makes for some really awesome pieces. I would have submitted some, but none of mine were really ready for showing yet. At least, not to my standard."

Mathias smirked and didn't even try to look at all abashed by her accusation. "Guilty," he grinned, not really minding the nudge to the ribs even if they were still a little sore from that morning's work out. He'd been doing a lot of core lately and it was starting to really hurt. He might have to dial it back a bit, but he was hoping he would just be able to work through it.

"On both counts, actually," He chuckles, looking at the next picture with feigned interest. "I was a bit of a wild child growing up. But that tends to happen when you're never in one place for more than two-to-four years." He'd let her think of that as she would.

"I grew out of it though, it stopped being fun when I realized it could actually damage my chances at a decent future. But its still my preferred medium. I know how it works and the things you can do with it are just astounding."

At her sly compliment he shrugged. "They say we're our own worst critic. I find that to be depressingly true."

"Not to sound like a snob. Well okay - no, this is going to be elitist as all hell so ******** it," Mathias laughed as he looked at the "art," in front of them. "I would never in a thousand years do anything remotely as embarrassing as that. The whole Art-for-Arts-Sake Bohemia crap, is well, crap."

"In my experience, people make art for two reasons, and only one of them is actually worth it in my opinion. The first reason is to make money - but if that's the only reason you're making art, you've already completely failed at your goal. Nobody pays decently for art anymore unless it's for advertising or a low level government contract - and even that's not a guaranteed paycheck. The age of the patron is pretty much dead. I make art for the second reason. Because it is something uniquely me. My abstract and surreal pieces are me to the very core. A five year old can make... this..." He motioned to piece in front of them.

"But to do actual decent portraits. To make a piece look good. You have to have talent. If not talent, skill. Art isn't just something you do overnight, and anyone who tells you as much..." He shrugged. "Well they're full of s**t."

As she stepped closer he chuckles. "Oh, my inner critic is hardly demonic in nature. I just expect the best of myself and my work. But I suppose if you really wanted to see some of my pieces it wouldn't hurt anyone." Of course they were all at the school studio or his apartment, but that could be worked on later.

"That's... Nai-Noble, of you." Mathias managed to catch his tongue at the very last second before he set himself up for a very big can of worms. "Though I'm afraid I can't say I share the same outlook. Because Life isn't really easy at all. Well, mine wasn't anyway. But I won't bore you with the David Copperfield version of my life story."

]"Anyone who admits to being wise before they are laying on their deathbed is wrong," Mathias quipped back to Ruthie. "Only fools are positive." Though he'd honestly be surprised if she recognized the quote at all. Not many people did.

"Talent... Talent is natural. You have it or you don't. Rembrandt had talent - Van Gough, had talent. Bob Ross had amazing talent - but what's better, he taught his skill to others, and that I can respect. Say what you want of the man, but I'd rather paint a happy little tree than try to figure out what I'm doing blind." He smiled at the girl, hoping she'd understand that he was just expressing an opinion.

"Skill can be taught, and skill can sometimes be mistaken for talent. Honestly, at the end of the day, skill will win out over talent - because regardless of how naturally gifted someone is. The person who knows what they are doing is always going to do better than the person who just... is good at something."

At her mention of wanting to hear his method of dealing with life he laughed darkly and shook his head. "I'm pretty sure, going home, drinking a beer and shagging my girlfriend's brain's out isn't what you want to hear. But that's essentially my coping mechanism for life."

And kicking the s**t out of senshi and knights, but he couldn't say that. But still...

"No, he's very much dead," Mathias chuckled weakly while shaking his head. "A crying shame, but such is the way of things." Mathias has a very pragmatic view of death. It took a lot of people he'd rather have not lost. One of them being a very important figure in his life that he dearly missed. But he knew they were in a better place. He may have been a lapsed Catholic, but his belief in heaven was still fairly strong.

"All of the above, of course. But also tack on on-again-off-again to that list - currently on. I'm hoping I can talk her into moving in, we've only been dating since High School."

He raised a brow at her sudden interest in his love life though. "Why do you ask?"