Art speaks for itself. I help it be heard.
Art speaks for itself. I help it be heard.
Art speaks for itself.
I help it be heard.
I work with artists, publishers, galleries, and tech and cultural innovators to craft messages that reflect who they are and resonate with the people they want to reach.
I work with artists, publishers, galleries, and tech and cultural innovators to craft messages that reflect who they are and resonate with the people they want to reach.
I work with artists, publishers, galleries, and tech and cultural innovators to craft messages that reflect who they are and resonate with the people they want to reach.
I specialise in translating complexity into messaging that's clear, resonant, and true to your vision.
I specialise in translating complexity into messaging that's clear, resonant, and true to your vision.
I specialise in translating complexity into messaging that's clear, resonant, and true to your vision.
Many creatives and innovators struggle to connect with wider audiences. They often find themselves caught between jargon that alienates and simplification that distorts their vision. I believe that by paying careful attention to your story and your work, we can discover authentic language that speaks more deeply — to both you and your audience. At its best, this process can even offer fresh insight into your work itself.
Many creatives and innovators struggle to connect with wider audiences. They often find themselves caught between jargon that alienates and simplification that distorts their vision. I believe that by paying careful attention to your story and your work, we can discover authentic language that speaks more deeply to both you and your audience. At its best, this process can even offer fresh insight into your work itself.
Many creatives and innovators struggle to connect with wider audiences. They often find themselves caught between jargon that alienates and simplification that distorts their vision. I believe that by paying careful attention to your story and your work, we can discover authentic language that speaks more deeply to both you and your audience. At its best, this process can even offer fresh insight into your work itself.
Services
In keeping with my personalized approach, I offer free initial consultations to first explore your needs, your story, and your work.
Written Content
Clear, compelling language tailored to you and your audience, including bios, exhibition texts, web content, press releases, white papers, and social media copy.
Video Content
Visual storytelling to elevate your presence: artist bios, interviews, and promotional content for events and releases.
Live Events
Personally available for moderation, artist talks, and interviews before a live audience.
Brand & Thought Leadership Consulting
Coaching to help you own your voice and connect with the public, including prep for talks, public appearances, strategic content, and grant applications.
Branding & Webdesign
In collaboration with a team of designers and creators, I offer full-spectrum branding and website design—logo and visual identity, photography, and written content—all tailored to your voice and audience.
My Story
For a long time, I felt caught between two worlds: complexity and clarity, intellectual depth and emotional truth, high-level language and real world impact. While completing my PhD in literature at Cornell University, I engaged with culture at its most conceptual. But it was isolating. The language failed to speak to the emotions or concerns of a wider audience, and sometimes even to the uniqueness of the works themselves.
So I left and spent six years in marketing and sales in the wine industry, while continuing my long-standing work as an arts journalist. Working in wine, I discovered impact and immediacy, and honed my ability to speak to audiences in their own language — whether rural Pennsylvanians, sommeliers at Michelin-starred restaurants in New York City, or hip restauranteurs in Berlin. But it was all surface-level.
That’s why I do this work. I know what it’s like to feel misunderstood or oversimplified - and I’ve seen how powerful it is when the right words unlock recognition, connection, and confidence. Beyond complexity and simplification, there’s another way, one that begins by listening deeply to creators and their works, and translating that depth for the people they want to reach.
More than just branding or messaging, it's about understanding, and helping others be understood.
My Story
For a long time, I felt caught between two worlds: complexity and clarity, intellectual depth and emotional truth, high-level language and real world impact. While completing my PhD in literature at Cornell University, I engaged with culture at its most conceptual. But it was isolating. The language failed to speak to the emotions or concerns of a wider audience — and sometimes even to the uniqueness of the works themselves.
So I left and spent six years in marketing and sales in the wine industry, while continuing my long-standing work as an arts journalist. Working in wine, I discovered impact and immediacy, and honed my ability to speak to audiences in their own language — whether rural Pennsylvanians, sommeliers at Michelin-starred restaurants in New York City, or hip restauranteurs in Berlin. But it was all surface-level.
That’s why I do this work. I know what it’s like to feel misunderstood or oversimplified - and I’ve seen how powerful it is when the right words unlock recognition, connection, and confidence. Beyond complexity and simplification, there’s another way, one that begins by listening deeply to creators and their works, and translating that depth for the people they want to reach.
This isn’t just branding or messaging. It’s about understanding — and helping others be understood.
Past Work
My past work includes messaging and brand strategy for art galleries and tech startups, promotional writing for major musicians and artists, including Jon Rafman and Ad Minoliti, as well as artist biographies and curatorial texts.
For me, writing lucidly about complex work means seeking to understand it. I draw on my background in academic research and criticism. But above all, I listen: creating an open space for creators to talk about their projects in their own language.
Interviewing has also been central to my live work, such as moderating a talk with the artist Yonamine at Michael Janssen Gallery in Berlin. I take real pleasure in front of an audience or a camera, with experience dating back to previous careers in academia and the wine industry, whether teaching cultural theory to Ivy League college students or delivering four-hour presentations on champagne to a large crowd in German.
I also host Berlin from the Gallery to the Street, an Instagram channel devoted to the city’s best art, on and off the pavement. Through photography, video reviews, and artist interviews, the channel cuts through the hype to offer my take on Berlin’s most compelling art, whether monumental works in Martin Gropius Bau or tags scrawled on a Berliner Altbau. It puts into practice my approach to cultural content: sophistication and impact without jargon or pretense. Check it out here.
Past Work
My past work includes promotional writing for major musicians and artists, including Jon Rafman and Ad Minoliti, as well as artist biographies and curatorial texts.
For me, writing lucidly about complex work means seeking to understand it. I draw on my background in academic research and criticism. But above all, I listen: creating an open space for creators to talk about their projects in their own language.
Interviewing has also been central to my live work, such as moderating a talk with the artist Yonamine at Michael Janssen Gallery in Berlin. I take real pleasure in front of an audience or a camera, with experience dating back to previous careers in academia and the wine industry, whether teaching cultural theory to Ivy League college students or delivering four-hour presentations on champagne to a large crowd in German.
I also host Berlin from the Gallery to the Street, an Instagram channel devoted to the city’s best art, on and off the pavement. Through photography, video reviews, and artist interviews, the channel cuts through the hype to offer my take on Berlin’s most compelling art, whether monumental works in Martin Gropius Bau or tags scrawled on a Berliner Altbau. It puts into practice my approach to cultural content: sophistication and impact without jargon or pretense. Check it out here.
Client Feedback
Client Feedback
I enjoyed working with Matteo. In our interview he was a generous listener and asked insightful questions.
He was also a perceptive viewer of my work. Matteo was able to write about my project with great clarity and effectively convey its stakes to a wide audience.
ad minoliti
artist
Matteo has a unique ability to frame complex ideas, and was able to capture not only the technical aspects but also the philosophical questions in my work.
He approached my topics with dedicated curiosity and created a space for open dialogue, fostering an engaged and enriching conversation.
sophie ERLUND
Chair of Art in Architecture, TUM
Matteo Calla’s text for the exhibition captured its essence with rare sensitivity and depth.
His thoughtful and intuitive questions led to a nuanced exploration that made me feel deeply understood as an artist. His writing resonates beyond description…like a quiet echo of the work itself
JOHN LONDONO
PHOTOGRAPHER
I enjoyed working with Matteo. In our interview he was a generous listener and asked insightful questions.
He was also a perceptive viewer of my work. Matteo was able to write about my project with great clarity and effectively convey its stakes to a wide audience.
ad minoliti
artist
Matteo has a unique ability to frame complex ideas, and was able to capture not only the technical aspects but also the philosophical questions in my work.
He approached my topics with dedicated curiosity and created a space for open dialogue, fostering an engaged and enriching conversation.
sophie ERLUND
Chair of Art in Architecture, TUM
Matteo Calla’s text for the exhibition captured its essence with rare sensitivity and depth.
His thoughtful and intuitive questions led to a nuanced exploration that made me feel deeply understood as an artist. His writing resonates beyond description…like a quiet echo of the work itself
JOHN LONDONO
PHOTOGRAPHER
I enjoyed working with Matteo. In our interview he was a generous listener and asked insightful questions.
He was also a perceptive viewer of my work. Matteo was able to write about my project with great clarity and effectively convey its stakes to a wide audience.
ad minoliti
artist
Matteo has a unique ability to frame complex ideas, and was able to capture not only the technical aspects but also the philosophical questions in my work.
He approached my topics with dedicated curiosity and created a space for open dialogue, fostering an engaged and enriching conversation.
sophie ERLUND
Chair of Art in Architecture, TUM
Matteo Calla’s text for the exhibition captured its essence with rare sensitivity and depth.
His thoughtful and intuitive questions led to a nuanced exploration that made me feel deeply understood as an artist. His writing resonates beyond description…like a quiet echo of the work itself
JOHN LONDONO
PHOTOGRAPHER
I enjoyed working with Matteo. In our interview he was a generous listener and asked insightful questions.
He was also a perceptive viewer of my work. Matteo was able to write about my project with great clarity and effectively convey its stakes to a wide audience.
ad minoliti
artist
Matteo has a unique ability to frame complex ideas, and was able to capture not only the technical aspects but also the philosophical questions in my work.
He approached my topics with dedicated curiosity and created a space for open dialogue, fostering an engaged and enriching conversation.
sophie ERLUND
Chair of Art in Architecture, TUM
Matteo Calla’s text for the exhibition captured its essence with rare sensitivity and depth.
His thoughtful and intuitive questions led to a nuanced exploration that made me feel deeply understood as an artist. His writing resonates beyond description…like a quiet echo of the work itself
JOHN LONDONO
PHOTOGRAPHER