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E-017/2000
January 28, 2000

 

OAS MUSEUM SPOTLIGHTS CHILEAN PAINTER ROBERTO MATTA

 

The Art Museum of the Organization of American States (OAS) last evening inaugurated an exhibition of works by Chilean painter Roberto Matta, considered one of the foremost contemporary painters.

Chilean Ambassador to the OAS Carlos Portales told the member state Ambassadors and others guests that the 88-year old Matta is already a legend whose work had influenced several generations of Chilean artists.

The Chilean diplomat noted that only a select few of the world’s art centers had ever featured a significant part of the sculptures created by the artist he described as "this giant among painters, well-known for his mastery of futuristic and galactic composition. A master of color and shapes, he ranks among a select group of major contemporary painters."

OAS Secretary General César Gaviria, who has met the featured artist, described the exhibition as very significant "not only because Matta’s sculptures are relatively unknown—compared to his paintings—but because Matta remains one of the greatest Latin American painters and a prominent influence on twentieth-century painting."

Tracing Matta’s artistic career from his involvement in the surrealist movement to abstract expressionism, Gaviria underscored the artist’s in-depth treatment of space and landscape, noting that, although sometimes unfathomable, his work remains attractive perhaps because he has painted the subconscious like no one else could. "In that respect, Matta is perhaps without equal among twentieth-century painters," the Secretary General observed.

The art exhibition will remain open to the public until March 12.

 

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