Viral Pineville, Louisiana Artist Releases Next Waffle House Themed Painting

PINEVILLE, La. (KPEL News) - A Louisiana artist who went viral for a Waffle House-inspired painting is at it again with another painting inspired by both the classics and the restaurant chain, and he tells KPEL News that it's not the last one he's doing, either.

Matt Dawson, of Pineville, Louisiana, painted a parody of the famous "Starry Nights" by Vincent van Gogh that he called "Starry Waffles." It featured the restaurant amid the "Starry Night" background and was immensely popular online.

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"When my wife was sick, we used to go down to New Orleans to see a doctor… and every time we would come back, we would stop at [Waffle House] in Sorrento," Dawson shared in an interview with Fox News at the time, adding that his wife Amber Dawson once struggled with bladder and kidney issues.

"In addition to the tip, I would always put five dollars on the jukebox for the waitress to [put] on whatever artist they liked," he added.

Dawson, who hails from Natchitoches, Louisiana, has been painting for a long time. He's self-taught and draws inspiration from a variety of pop culture references, as well as beautiful and iconic scenes. He also sells prints of his work on Etsy, a popular platform for selling goods and crafts.

A pharmacist during the day, Dawson has been painting for more than 30 years.

He also received requests for different uses for his painting, including by someone who wanted to use it in a classroom.

"This is the coolest thing," he wrote on Twitter. "Someone contacted me this week to use my painting in their class. I thought that was the coolest thing ever. The response to this is amazing. I’m really blessed."

"Starry Waffles" is just one of the prints for sale. The original, he said in a thread on Reddit, has already been sold.

The viral painting has received a ton of attention online, and it even got a comment from the official Waffle House account on Instagram.

"Waffles of Memory"

Dawson announced his latest work on his social media pages earlier this month. The painting, "Waffles of Memory" is based on the classic Salvador Dali work "Persistence of Memory."

The original painting sold on Dawson's Etsy store, but you can buy a print for $50. However, this isn't the end of his work featuring Waffle House. Dawson says you can expect another one in 2024.

"This is the second in the Waffle House series I’m doing, I will be doing a third next year," Dawson told KPEL News. "I’ve had this one in my head for a while and I finally got to do it."

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"I do take commissions," he also noted on Twitter. "I already have some for Christmas. Let me know soon so I can get them to you in time." He also advised followers to send him a direct message on the platform so they can work out details.