About Us

Welcome to true bugs go!, a repository for the art of Jordan Smith and Mattison May, collaborative artists based in Massachusetts. In February 2025, with no prior experience with abstract art or collaboration, we made art together for the first time. The result permanently changed our perspective on and approach to art. The art we create together is unlike anything we create alone. We started true bugs go! to document this shared experience. We believe the joy of creating, experimenting, and problem-solving together is visible in our art as well. We’re excited to share it with others!

The Process

With each piece we make together, we get better at communicating, brainstorming, and working together. Our process usually works like this: we start with whatever comes to mind and then pass the piece off to the other person. We add elements and continue passing the piece back and forth. As it nears completion, we discuss it thoroughly. What does it need and when is it finished? Who has the best skillset to complete it? Some pieces are complete in two steps, and others take dozens. Some we discuss throughout the process, and others only at the end. Using this method, we have explored varying combinations of gouache, collage, acrylic, colored pencil, and oil.

On Collaboration

Making collaborative art has been fun and fulfilling in a way entirely different from our experiences with individual art. When creating art, there is sometimes pressure to take ownership of ideas or represent some deep and personal expression of self. Collaboration has allowed us to give up some control and be less possessive of what our art can be. In return, we get to know another person in a new and deeper way and make art we could never make alone.