Matthew Metzger lives and works in Chicago. He received his MFA from the University of Chicago and attended the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture Residency Program, both in 2009. His recent solo exhibition at The Renaissance Society titled Heirloom concluded with a full monograph of the same name published in 2022. Other exhibitions include Coda, a solo exhibition of new work in 2023 at Magenta Plains, New York, The Freedom Principle, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia; and The Works, Fondation CAB, Brussels; and is represented by Regards, Chicago. He has been an editor at Shifter Magazine.

He is Associate Professor and Acting Chair of Art at the University of Illinois at Chicago.