Small is a passionate believer in social inclusion and that, given the opportunities to be heard and respected, all individuals have something of value to contribute to society. His paintings are an expression of his world view: by painting young marginalized figures of society he allows the viewer to spend time with these people in the hope that a shared a sense of humanity unrestricted by class and social boundaries will arise. Previous projects include 'Hope in Life' where Matt ran a series of weekly workshops with people who have spent time in mental health institutions, and/or were homeless or educationally excluded. Each week this group would come together and, alongside established artists, express themselves through painting and music. Earlier this year Small – along with Brooklyn based street artist Swoon – conducted a series of art workshops with the children from the Robert Shitima School in Kabwe, Zambia. Following this experience Small produced a series of portraits of the children he met that were exhibited alongside the young student’s artwork in Black Rat Project’s most recent exhibition ‘That I May See’. From this exhibition Black Rat Projects raised £10,000 for the ZAMCOG charity.