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Mason is an Artist, and Community Organizer with 20 years of experience in multiple types of creative projects ranging from film production to exhibit design and fabrication. He has co-founded and operated two award winning arts organizations working with adult and youth communities fostering engagement in the arts through workshops and events management.
His passion for art, design, film started as a child, knowing at an early age he wanted to make visual effects. He received a scholarship to attend the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), turning down acceptance at traditional film schools, in effort to get his hands on a film camera his freshman year. He got his start working in the Chicago film industry, while pursuing his own experimental artistic career. In 1998 he co-founded 365pm, an online artist support network that helped artists document their projects online. In late 2000, his move to Los Angeles was motivated by a desire to combine his love for art with his desire for filmmaking. He worked on numerous Hollywood productions and assisted some of the world's most prominent artists such as Paul McCarthey, Chris Burden, Sol LeWitt. 365pm continued to work with various artists in Los Angeles and helped organize events such as the 2002 Echo Park Soap Box Derby Race. After the birth of his daughter, he and his family moved to Minneapolis where he focused on exhibit design and fabrication and started MPHall Design making furniture and design objects. He sat on the board of a Walker Arts organization starting Box 110 and curated numerous art events working with galleries such as The Art of This. Today, he lives in Berkeley with his wife and two kids and works independently for institutions such the Exploratorium, while continuing to make custom design objects and experimental films. He co-founding Narrative Art Center, an award winning community arts organization focused on teaching visual communication through film, story, and art making. He also teaches astrophotography and organizes photography outings for the East Bay amatuer astronomy community. |