Invasion of the Night, oil on canvas, 1940, SFMOMA.

Roberto Sebastian Matta Echaurren (1911-2002), usually known as Matta, was one of Chile's best-known painters. Born in Santiago on 11 November 1911, he was initially an interior decorator, but became disillusioned with this occupation and left for Europe in the mid 1930s. His travels led him to meet artists such as René Magritte, Salvador Dalí, André Breton, and Le Corbusier. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (891x565, 108 KB) Summary This image is of a drawing, painting, print, or other two-dimensional work of art, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the artist who produced the image, the person who commissioned the... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (891x565, 108 KB) Summary This image is of a drawing, painting, print, or other two-dimensional work of art, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the artist who produced the image, the person who commissioned the... A painter is a person who paints woodwork, walls, etc. ... Santiagos Metropolitan Cathedral Santiago (Spanish: â–¶ (help· info)) is Chiles capital and largest city. ... November 11 is the 315th day of the year (316th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 50 days remaining. ... 1911 (MCMXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... // Events and trends A public speech by Benito Mussolini, founder of the Fascist movement The 1930s were described as an abrupt shift to more radical lifestyles, as countries were struggling to find a solution to the global depression. ... This is not a pipe. ... Salvador Dalí as photographed in 1934 by Carl Van Vechten Salvador Felip Jacint Dalí Domènech (Catalan) Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dalí Domènech (Spanish), (May 11, 1904 – January 23, 1989) was one of the most important painters of the 20th century, best known for his surrealist work identified by its... André Breton (February 18, 1896 – September 28, 1966) was a French writer, poet, and surrealist theorist. ... Notre Dame du Haut Le Corbusier (October 6, 1887–August 27, 1965) was a Swiss architect famous for what is now called modernism or the International Style, along with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Walter Gropius, and Theo van Doesburg. ...

It was Breton who provided the major spur to the Chilean's direction in art, encouraging his work and introducing him to the leading members of the Paris Surrealist movement. Matta produced illustrations and articles in the Surrealist journal Minotaure. During this period he was introduced to the work of many prominent contemporary European artists, such as Pablo Picasso and Marcel Duchamp. 240 The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali is one of the most famous surrealist paintings. ... Minotaure (1933 to 1939) was a primarily Surrealist-oriented publication founded by Albert Skira in Paris. ... Young Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (Full name) (October 25, 1881 in Málaga, Spain – April 8, 1973) was a Spanish painter and sculptor. ... Marcel Duchamp. ...

The first true flowering of Matta's own art came in 1938, when he moved from drawing to the oil painting for which he is best known. This period coincided with his emigration to the United States, where he lived until 1948. His early paintings, such as Invasion of the Night, give an indication of the work he would continue, with diffuse light patterns and bold lines on a featureless background. During the 1940s and 1950s, the disturbing state of world politics found reflection in Matta's work, with the canvases becoming busy with images of electrical machinery and distressed figures. The addition of clay to Matta's paintings in the early 1960s led an added dimension to the distortions. 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1948 (MCMXLVIII) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (891x565, 108 KB) Summary This image is of a drawing, painting, print, or other two-dimensional work of art, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the artist who produced the image, the person who commissioned the... // Events and trends World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrination, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons such as the atomic bomb. ... // Events and trends This map shows two essential global spheres during the Cold War in 1959. ... Politics is a process by which collective decisions are made within groups. ...

In his art Matta creates new dimensions in a blend of organic and cosmic lifeforms. He was one of the first artists to take this abstract leap.

Elle Loge La Folie, oil on canvas, 1970.

Matta's connections with Breton's Surrealist movement were severed when a private disagreement led to his expulsion from the group, but by this time his own name was becoming widely known. He divided his life between Europe and South America during the 1950s and 1960s, successfully combining the political and the semi-abstract in epic surreal canvases. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1575x475, 143 KB) Summary This image is of a drawing, painting, print, or other two-dimensional work of art, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the artist who produced the image, the person who commissioned the... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1575x475, 143 KB) Summary This image is of a drawing, painting, print, or other two-dimensional work of art, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the artist who produced the image, the person who commissioned the...

Media pirates have begun a circulation of his video "Système 88".

Matta died in Civitavecchia, Italy, on 23 November 2002. Civitavecchia is a town and comune of the province of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio, a sea port on the Tyrrhenian sea, 50 miles WNW of Rome, 42°06N 11°47E. According to the 2003 census, its population was 50,100. ... November 23 is the 327th day of the year (328th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 38 days remaining. ... 2002 (MMII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

• Passeron, René (1984). The Concise Encyclopedia of Surrealism. Trans. J. Griffiths. Ware, UK: Omega Books. ISBN 0-907853-28-5.

External link

• The Art of Matta
• exhibitions, galleries and museums