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An Intimate Exhibition at Coco Northeast
Tucked into the front hallway of Coco Northeast, a quiet and powerful exhibition is inviting members and visitors to pause, reflect, and connect with a remarkable artistic legacy.
Curated and presented by Coco host Jack Strub, The Matthew Lau Collection: Private Paintings from the Studio of a Teacher offers a rare, first-of-its-kind public viewing of the visual artwork of Matthew Charles Lau (1958–2025). While Matthew was widely celebrated as an opera singer, vocal coach, and beloved professor at Simpson College, his work as a visual artist remained largely private during his lifetime. Until now.
How the Collection Came Together
Matthew’s paintings came into Jack’s care through Marilyn Mueller, a longtime colleague and close friend of Matthew’s, with the original intention that the works be distributed among former students. But once the paintings were gathered and displayed together, it became clear they told a larger, deeply interconnected story. One that deserved to be experienced as a whole.
In partnership with Matthew’s brother, David Lau, and Arts District Imageworks, each painting was professionally scanned to create a digital archive. This effort preserves the original works as a unified collection, now known as the Lau Studio Alumni Collection, while allowing students, friends, and family to access museum-quality prints and continue sharing Matthew’s creative voice.
Why Coco Northeast
Though Matthew never sought recognition for his visual art, housing this exhibition at Coco Northeast, in the heart of Minneapolis’ Arts District, feels especially fitting. It honors a longtime dream of his to live, create, and be surrounded by art and community here.
Displaying the collection in a shared, working space invites art into everyday life and allows this legacy to be encountered organically by the community Matthew longed to be part of.
A Life of Music, Teaching, and Creative Range
Matthew’s life was one of extraordinary creative range. Raised in Indiana, he began performing at a young age and went on to study music and theatre at Indiana University before earning a master’s degree from the Eastman School of Music.
His professional opera career included work with Sarasota Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, New York City Opera, and the Opera Company of Philadelphia, among others. In 2012, he received two Grammy Awards for his work on the Naxos recording of Elmer Gantry.
As a teacher, Matthew’s impact was just as profound. He joined the Simpson College faculty in 2011 and was named Outstanding Teacher of the Year by the TRIO program in 2017. To many students, he was not only a mentor in technique, but a model of what it meant to live honestly and fully.
Mentorship, Identity, and Legacy
Matthew was openly gay, unapologetically himself, and deeply generous with his wisdom. To many, he embodied what is lovingly known as a “Gay Elder.”
For students navigating their identities, he offered something rare: a vision of adulthood grounded in pride, self-respect, and joy. That same spirit carries through his paintings, which reflect curiosity, vulnerability, and confidence in equal measure.
The Artwork: Study, Joy, and Process
Many works in the exhibition are titled “Study after—”, intentional recreations inspired by artists Matthew admired, particularly within cubist and queer artistic traditions. He approached art as an act of inquiry rather than ownership, often comparing creation to building a sandcastle. The meaning lived in the making, not in permanence.
In keeping with that philosophy, Matthew never signed his paintings, viewing them as studies and homages rather than finished statements.
Seen together, the collection reveals a deeply intuitive and expressive practice. Fragmented planes, layered color, and joyful experimentation echo the lived experience of shedding expectation and becoming oneself.
Experiencing the Collection
For a brief moment in time, these paintings are gathered publicly, inviting all who pass through Coco Northeast to experience a lifetime of artistry that is musical, visual, personal, and profoundly human.
They ask us to slow down, look closely, and consider what it means to live openly, generously, and full of color.
Prints Available
Prints from the collection are available.
Those interested in high-quality giclée reproductions on fine art paper or canvas can contact Jack Strub directly at jstrub24@gmail.com or 763-280-0059.