Taking a page from Charles Bukowski and a line from Tom Waits, Matt Haffner’s work delves into a narrative, which has its roots in the everyman, addressing aspects of the underbelly of society, with characters on the fringes of culture. Inspired aesthetically by Japanese and European film noir of the 50’s and 60’s, these narratives explore the moments of intrigue when the fabric of mundane existence is torn away. Through a set of threatening or inexplicable encounters, the characters and their counterparts move though an urban landscape, participants in an ambiguous narrative and caught in the moments of pause between action and reaction.

Using a cinematic format, these pieces reference the film noir and comic books that inspire them. The enigmatic relationship between juxtaposing spatial elements and the narrative figure is explored, using the urban landscape as both setting and aesthetic component. These atmospheric portrayals describe scenes where the characters and their environs are caught in the fabric of a flash fiction.

This most current work uses a spray paint stencil technique for the figures that is rooted in graffiti, but made exceptionally more complex, incorporating up to seven unique stenciled layers to create a multi-tonal effect. These figures are combined with cut vinyl environments, both to take advantage of differing surface textures and to define and isolate the figure within its architectural surrounds. The vinyl and enamel spray paint are grounded on a field of roughed silver leaf which conceptually connects the work to its photographic roots, suggesting a deteriorated nitrate film, tin type or aging silver print.