ARTIST BIO

Matthew Shutt is a UK based artist, who creates photorealistic paintings, mostly about a very particular and topical theme: the superheroes universe. His work unifies the imaginary world, already present in comics and movies, with a reality often too much concrete and hard. He uses a child’s point of view in his compositions to both represent the perception he had of the life when he was younger and also that of his own children today. This need to recreate a sensation of life simpler, more joyful, colourful and carefree is the focal point of his paintings.

About this choice, Matthew Shutt said: “The action figure toy, for me, is the most compelling image that defines my life since I can remember and the limitless situations it can be integrated with mundane ordinary objects is fascinating

and fuels my obsession. Added together, this gives a different dynamic within my work and style and changes the narrative viewpoint amidst its complexity and perception yet it retains the simplicity it was allowed back when I was younger“.

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His more recent work is a strain developed from his nostalgic look at action figures in his early work and the two can intertwine back and forth and not compromise each other’s importance in his whole aesthetic, something influenced by his respect of German artist Gerhard Richter who offered diversity and flexibility between subject matter and aesthetic reproduction.

The scenes in all his works are all objectively reproduced from the photograph and preserve a moment in time that will never be duplicated again, something he strived to achieve within his ‘superhero’ paintings in his earlier work, a continuation that will create a diverse body of work and endless speculation and exploration in future visions to come.

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Matthew Shutt is represented by Gallery Alchemy,Australia. For availability of original works please enquire via  linktr.ee/galleryalchemy