“Good bye Matt”
December 16th 2017
Our teammate, friend and Co-Founder of interCollective passed away last week. We are so devastated by this tremendous loss and the huge gap he left in us! Time went by so quickly that we missed the chance to meet in person. Though it was permanently on top of our agenda. In the meantime, the three of us were messaging back and forth every day for hours instead of for more than a year. We became close friends even from afar. Efi and I had the great opportunity to dive into the humorous and inspiring world of Mister Lewis. We talked about image making, which picture to post next on Instagram, the meaning and story behind an image. He used to talk intensively about what makes a good picture a good picture. Matthew was the one who cared the most. He asked us all the time “is this good enough? Is this right?“ His precise opinion kept us speechless for moments many times. And usually, he was right. This remarkable vision of his made him so amazingly gifted – we both loved him for his beautiful mind – very unique, very Matthew!
Apart from discussing photographs, we spent even more time talking about even more meaningful things! His dreams, his young daughter whom he loved so much. His fears. The funny things he experienced while walking his dog. Or the peaceful moments when he watched the waves at sea. About marzipan (a seasonal German candy) in depth. Ours was a very touching conversation about painful past events and a happy future with lots of hope. An exciting and wide open road towards all the inspiring ideas he came up with. Now, this very road has come to an end, much too soon!
Looking back, I can’t help but wonder if things had turned out differently had I been able to read more closely between the lines he wrote… But Matthew did not appreciate these kinds of possible conditional constructions much. He liked meaningful things that matter. Also marzipan. Lubecker!
All that’s left for us to say is it was always a pleasure talking to him. Usually, our never-ending conversation ended something like this:
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That’s how he was! He always left us with a giddy smile, and we will never forget him for what he was: a great artist, a great inspiration, a genuine and wonderful friend.
Thank you so very much for letting us into your orbit, Matthew! You were truly the perfect companion we could ever imagine. We hope you found the peace and freedom you so desperately needed – miss you much, mate! ?
Sending much love to his young daughter, wife and family.
Efi & Paulus
Link
pegaweg (Matthew’s sister, Chloe)