Meow Wolf, Omega Mart founder Matt King dies
Matt King, a key visionary behind the arts and entertainment company Meow Wolf, has died. The company posted the news Monday afternoon on its social media pages. King was 37, and died Saturday.
No further details of King’s death have been made public. The company’s Facebook and Instagram posts described his passing as “sudden.”
A leader in the immersive art culture, King grew the company to the extensively scaled installation Omega Mart supermarket and alternative reality game at Area15 in Las Vegas. The company also operated House of Eternal Return art installation and concert venue in Santa Fe, N.M.; and Convergence Station in Denver.
Omega Mart was just the company’s second permanent installation.
In all, he was involved in developing 34 Meow Wolf projects since helping launch the company in 2008.
“We will honor Matt’s spirit by carrying his brilliance forward in our work and in our everyday lives, building upon the monumental legacy that he leaves behind,” Meow Wolf CEO Jose Tolosa said in a statement. “Thousands have been deeply touched by the artistic genius of his work, and nothing speaks to Matt’s influence more than the Meow Wolf community who is coming together in his honor.”
Meow Wolf posted a statement on its Facebook page marking King’s death:
“The Meow Wolf community is devastated and in absolute shock by the sudden passing of Meow Wolf co-founder, artist and dearest friend Matt King. Our thoughts and condolences go out to his family, friends and everyone who knows and loves him.
“Matt’s work as both a collaborator and artist was like no other: monumental, groundbreaking, otherworldly, and wild. This is a tremendous loss to the world. And we are tremendously grateful to have shared time and space with him.”
Omega Mart opened at Area 15 in February 2021. Several celebrities have visited the annex, the anchor installation at Area 15.
King himself was an artist, an abstract expressionist painter. He was also a multi-instrumentalist, known to be an avid canoer, and taught outdoor education to grade-schoolers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. King is a native of Arlington.
Marsi Gray, the company’s senior creative producer, posted: “Matt, one of the founders of Meow Wolf, has been such a lovely, darling, gorgeous, funny funny funny, amazing presence that has been foundational to the past 4.5 years I have worked with the company. Such a hard worker, so dedicated, and likely the most beloved human in our whole company. Our spirit animal. Laughter and play trailed around him, constantly. I think of Matt and I think of laughter.”
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Meow Wolf statement on the death of co-founder Matt King:
"The Meow Wolf community is devastated and in absolute shock by the sudden passing of Meow Wolf co-founder, artist and dearest friend Matt King. Our thoughts and condolences go out to his family, friends and everyone who knows and loves him.
Matt's work as both a collaborator and artist was like no other: monumental, groundbreaking, otherworldly, and wild. This is a tremendous loss to the world. And we are tremendously grateful to have shared time and space with him.
Matt is a wizard who is riding rainbows in the astral plane now. His spirit is no longer constrained by the physical limitations of this world, and we all are responsible for continuing to build what he began with us here.
He was fearless and untameable. He dedicated his life to Meow Wolf and in turn, inspired thousands of artists and built the company that we have today. He cared deeply for the people around him and lived his life with an unbound passion for creating and collaborating.
Matt was present at the very first Meow Wolf meeting in 2008 and, along with Quinn Tincher, created Meow Wolf's first immersive art show before anyone at Meow Wolf even knew what immersive art was. Meow Wolf was part of Matt's life purpose, which was to create a better world for humanity. He did that.
Matt's spirit will live on in our collective heart. We will continue to honor him by carrying his brilliance forward in our work and in our everyday lives. We love you Matt."
