This exquisite work on paper, Untitled (a Pajarito), 1940, is emblematic of an important period and medium in Matta’s oeuvre, as it was his drawings that first created a sensation in the art world and secured his place in history as one of the most important Surrealist artists. This particular work embodies Matta’s ongoing interest in the cycle of life as portrayed by the artist’s unique biomorphic figures, which were part of his highly instinctive and personalized Surrealist iconography.
In 1935, Roberto Matta, who had been trained as an architect, turned to a new form of artistic expression when he went to live in Paris and entered the social circle of a number of the Surrealist artists and poets. The rejection of formalism in art and the quasi-surrealist illustrations of the time had a huge impact on Matta and made him observe reality in a new manner. Once he rid himself of the constraints imposed by his architectural training, Matta started drawing full time. His early works already evinced a deep understanding of the Surrealist objective: to create a liaison between the world of dreams and the waking state. As his drawings evolved, he demonstrated a lucid understanding of landscapes derived from the geometry of forms. More importantly, the iconography he developed during this period depicted stunning introspective compositions, to which he referred to as Psychological Morphologies, that allowed viewers to discover the imagery on their own terms. It was precisely these compositions that impressed the leading Surrealists of the time, such as Gordon Onslow Ford, Salvador Dalí, Yves Tanguy, Joan Miró, and Marcel Duchamp. André Breton was particularly enthusiastic about Matta’s drawings. Not only did Breton purchase two of Matta’s early works on paper, but he would later include Matta’s work in the famous 1938 Exposition Internationale du Surréalism in Paris and declare the artist to be the most significant emerging Surrealist of the time.
Matta’s biomorphic forms became part of the Surrealists’ lexicon. These included clouds, water, rocks, plants and microscopic organisms that were in a continuous state of change. Matta believed that such forms could readily evoke a variety of associations in a viewer’s mind. In Matta’s drawings, a moment of time can be of minute duration or it can embrace a lifetime of a personage’s activities seen at once in a single form. Matta’s quest to capture metamorphosis and to depict objects in transformation remained a preoccupation throughout his prolific career. Sexuality and violence are also ever present motifs within his works, ranging from subtle to overt. Matta and fellow members of the Surrealist group believed that the act of sex was the ultimate manifestation of creation. Untitled, (a Pajarito), 1940 illustrates his interest in the life cycle, particularly the exaltation of birth. This work depicts several human figures dancing in a garden of flowers and fluttering birds. The dancers are paired and the female figures are colorfully dressed, while other figures appear to be holding musical instruments. Interestingly, and what makes this delightful drawing unique, is that it is one of the most exultant examples of Matta’s work, depicting joy and revelry as an undeniable celebration of life.
