Beauty will save the world” – is a quote attributed to Fydor Dostoevsky, which Mattie has hanging in her studio, to keep her centered. Mattie embraces an automatic style of creation, (the first step begets the next, which begets the next . . .), backed by intricate designs and themes for each woman’s dress that she creates. Each is filled with nostalgia and nuance. Their real power rests in their ability to represent two opposites at once, an inner and an outer life, a forcefulness of form and a delicate construction. The beauty is in the harmony that she can find in the contradiction, suspended between opposing forces. Her sculptures are generally suspended. She works primarily with abaca fibre (a strong, high shrinkage paper pulp), wire, and ephemera that she collects.