Roberto Matta's Visionary Universe Explored in Venice Exhibition

Galleria Tommaso Calabro in Venice presents a new exhibition dedicated to Roberto Sebastián Matta (Santiago del Cile, 1911 – Civitavecchia, 2002), a key surrealist of the 20th century. The show features over twenty works created between New York, Rome, Milan, and Paris, spanning from the late 1940s to the early 1970s. Matta, who considered himself an explorer of vision, moved beyond visible reality to depict dreamlike worlds and evolving universes. His New York period (1939–1949) deeply influenced Abstract Expressionism, exemplified by the untitled 1949 work on display. The exhibition highlights his concept of the 'open cube' and painterly cosmologies, blending nature, the unconscious, and species into a dynamic language. Notable pieces include four 1943 drawings (e.g., Animaux, Soleil) created for the surrealist magazine VVV, founded by André Breton in New York. In one gallery, L'or du Veau (1969) evokes futuristic and sci-fi aesthetics, reportedly inspiring George Lucas's Star Wars. Also exhibited is Alidor (1974), an armchair designed with Gavina, accompanied by a recording of Matta describing his creative process as a form of hallucination. The installation juxtaposes works from different periods by chromatic and stylistic affinities, offering an immersive journey through Matta's fusion of reality and imagination.