“Painting is dead.” I can sympathize with Paul Delaroche’s declaration in the 1830s when I look at some uninspired paintings that I’ve seen around lately, but Walter Matthews’s works in his solo exhibition Looks like a Shout at Portspace Gallery is that jolt of electrical current that zaps abstraction back to life.
Matthews, a current MFA candidate at USF, is dedicated to the process of painting. First relinquishing control and giving the hand autonomy to have the opportunity to make intuitive marks, he then responds and builds upon these strokes with formal decisions as he goes. Creating “reaction-based” work, in which pretty much anything goes.
“I usually start with a loose preconceived notion of how the painting will exist and then start. It’s a kind of trick that I’ve developed for myself to get me into the act. After the first few marks, the painting is in limbo (between the wall and the trash can). My working process is all about continuously creating the conditions for discovery, and for myself,” Matthews explains.
Some of his bold lines have the luminosity of a Mary Weatherford painting without the use of neon lights — as seen in the largest painting of the show, “Untitled” (#1, in my numbering, because all of his paintings are untitled). Bursts of highlighter-colored lines zing through the tan surface, delineating the space between figuration and abstraction with finger-like projections or carefully shaded lines that hint at visual dimension.
Getting more chaotic in “Untitled” (#2), his figuration stands out more (perhaps evoking a still life with flowers in a vase, though extremely abstracted nonetheless). Just when you think you spot something recognizable, identification tends to dissipate, allowing for constant reinterpretation and evaluation of these hectic strokes.
Matthews proves he can go between excessive line work to reductive, minimal compositions with ease as you shift from “Untitled” (#2) to “Untitled” (#3), a mostly orange piece. These paintings truly speak to painters with their materiality. Thick globs of oil paint — possibly squeezed right out of the tube — barely cling to the canvas, contrasting with the more ephemeral quality of the use of orange spray paint in the background that peek through the negative spaces the lines create. In addition to painted lines, marks from oil pastel sticks bring the action of drawing into the picture, allowing for nuanced line qualities ranging from thick and bold to rough and grainy.
Just because Matthews is breathing new air into this traditional material doesn’t qualify his work as falling under zombie formalism (aka revival of abstraction in its combination of formalist elements in painting and the “zombie-like” revalidation of discarded aesthetics of the abstract expressionist movement). It’s apparent the artist isn’t making the same painting over and over again, and doesn’t seem to be playing it safe since his previous works were rooted in figure painting. Matthews is taking risks with these works, and his experimentation is evident in the trace of his hand over the canvas.
Though the artist currently admires Asger Jorn, Arshile Gorky, and Sigmar Polke, his gritty use of paint reminds me of a delicious Mark Grotjahn painting, using layers upon layers of pigment to manipulate lines and forms within the frame of “Untitled” (#4). The figure/ground relationship seems to be more obscured (in comparison to more open paintings) with its overall composition. With eyes jumping from one section to another, this piece is easily the most captivating painting at the gallery. Heavy outlines force some parts to the forefront while other shapes recede, but for the most part, all sections of the painting compete with each other for attention, all yelling from the far corners of the painting to the center — bringing you back to the title of the show.
“My friend and colleague Brandon Guerts walked in the studio while I was working, pointed to a painting and told me, ‘It looks like a shout,’ then went on to suggest that should be its title. I also acknowledge it as a loose reference to Edvard Munch's "Scream" and Francis Bacon's screaming popes. I like this idea of attempting to render visible something we cannot naturally see, which I think both of these painters were sincerely trying to do. Also, the whole Paul Klee quote comes to mind for me: the job of painting is to render thoughts visible, not reproduce the visible. This is not to say that I believe my paintings render visible sensations, I just think the idea is a very interesting departure point for making,” Matthews says.
Just like all great conversations, it’s best to chat with these paintings face to face. Your eyes will be rewarded.
Looks like a Shout: Paintings by Walter Matthews
Through Dec. 2. Viewable by appointment.
Portspace Gallery, 3007 Beach Blvd. S., Gulfport.
