Roberto Matta

Roberto Matta was a Chilean artist and architect known for his significant contributions to the Surrealist movement. His vibrant and expansive paintings frequently portrayed ethereal landscapes and distorted human figures. 

Biography of Roberto Matta

Roberto Matta was born in Santiago, Chile, and studied architecture at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. He later moved to Paris, where he worked for the architect Le Corbusier. While this time, he met André Breton, the leader of the Surrealist movement, and began experiments with automatic drawing, a technique used by Surrealist artists to access the subconscious mind.

Roberto Matta produced illustrations for Surrealist-oriented journals, such as Minotaure. During this period, he explored the works of renowned European artists, including influential figures like Pablo Picasso and Marcel Duchamp.

In 1938, Matta transitioned from drawing to oil painting. This pivotal period coincided with his decision to relocate to the United States, where he resided until 1948. During this time, Matta's distinctive artistic style flourished, solidifying his reputation as an artist of extraordinary talent.

Matta's association with the Surrealist movement came to an abrupt end due to a private disagreement concerning Arshile Gorky, a fellow artist. There were allegations that Matta's relationship with Gorky's wife indirectly played a role in Gorky's tragic suicide. As a consequence, Matta was expelled from the group.

Roberto Matta's art style

Matta's early paintings were characterized by their dreamlike, hallucinatory quality and the incorporation of biomorphic forms. His interest in science and cosmology led to the inclusion of images depicting galaxies and other celestial bodies in his artworks.

During the tumultuous decades of the 1940s and 1950s, Roberto Matta's artwork served as a powerful reflection of the unsettling state of global politics. His canvases became visually complex, featuring imagery of electrical machinery and anguished figures. These works encapsulated the anxieties and distress prevalent in the world during that period.

In the early 1960s, Matta introduced clay into his paintings. This innovative approach brought a tangible and tactile quality to his artworks, enriching their expressive nature. The inclusion of clay opened up new possibilities for Matta, allowing him to explore and push the boundaries of form and texture in his artistic compositions.

Recognition of Roberto Matta

Roberto Matta's contributions to the art world were widely recognized and celebrated. One notable exhibition in Roberto Matta's career was a retrospective held at The Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1957. This significant showcase of his work traveled to the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis (1957) and then to the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston in 1958.

Matta continued to create and inspire until his passing on November 23, 2002, in Civitavecchia, Italy.