36
Sebastian Matta (Santiago del Cile, 1911 - Civitavecchia, 2002)
Foreum, up the sun
pastel on paper
h 71X53 cm in frame h 92X113 cm
Extremely rare work with a descriptive text on the back, handwritten by the painter, describing the image on the front. Titled lower right. Informal positive opinion from the Matta Archives.
Courtesy of the Matta Archives
The drawing "Foreum, up the sun" depicts a construction of architectural elements, panels, and small antennas. Yellow geometric shapes, corresponding to the solar panels, reinforce the reference to the conversion of light into energy. The green markings suggest plants and vegetation, because solar energy is understood as an ecological and regenerative resource. The space is open and conducive to discussion, a place where the form and function of energy become an opportunity for encounter, thought, and action, connecting physical spaces, technologies, and political imaginations. The drawing invites us to think about the energy transition not only as a technical issue, but also as a civic art form, a form of co-creation, in which the "forum" is the site of cultural transformation.
Courtesy of the Matta Archives
The drawing "Foreum, up the sun" depicts a construction of architectural elements, panels, and small antennas. Yellow geometric shapes, corresponding to the solar panels, reinforce the reference to the conversion of light into energy. The green markings suggest plants and vegetation, because solar energy is understood as an ecological and regenerative resource. The space is open and conducive to discussion, a place where the form and function of energy become an opportunity for encounter, thought, and action, connecting physical spaces, technologies, and political imaginations. The drawing invites us to think about the energy transition not only as a technical issue, but also as a civic art form, a form of co-creation, in which the "forum" is the site of cultural transformation.
The text Matta wrote on the back of the drawing presents itself as a highly forward-thinking and visionary document: a true poetic-political manifesto on solar energy and a lucid and passionate reflection on the need to abandon destructive energy sources for an ethical, sustainable, and collective future, founded on the use of sunlight. The approach is one of integrated ecological thinking, where technology, nature, culture, and politics must converge.
The writing lucidly and visionarily reflects the historical and cultural context of the 1970s, in the midst of the energy crisis and post-industrial disillusionment.
The references are to the oil crisis (1973-1979), with OPEC cutting production, causing skyrocketing prices, resulting in inflation and economic stagnation in Western countries. The text mentions "barrels of oil," "USA," "energy prices," and "investment panic," highlighting the link between oil and economic instability.
Matta also refers to Three Mile Island, an accident that occurred in 1979 at a nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania and generated profound global anxiety about nuclear safety (“When more than three feet of radioactive water creates a deadly pool on 3miles-island…”)
Nuclear energy is described as a cannibalistic, dangerous, and complicated force, unlike the sun, which is free and universal and "must remain the property of all..." Matta proposes the sun as a free, inexhaustible, and equitable source of energy, a symbol of a break with industrial and capitalist logic ("Capital is afraid to invest in energy (!?)... a serious crisis"). Solar energy is seen as a political art: not just a technology, but a transformation of the human imagination and intelligence ("To add reality to an abstract picture of solar energy... a transformation of the human image and intelligence of the future is needed"). Matta identifies the centralized control of energy (coal, gas, oil, nuclear) as a cause of exploitation, war, and crisis. Energy becomes a commodity, a source of power, and social instability ("The price of energy disrupts the way of life"). The solution is not only technological, but cultural and social: “Converting one production concept into another – this is intimidating and discouraging, but we must start where we can in the present”).
Matta doesn't limit himself to a denunciation. He also includes references to existing solutions, such as photovoltaics ("Discovering the photoelectric cell..."), energy agriculture ("Area producing alcohol that can be converted into energy"), urban heat recovery ("The heat that is lost... is already recovered here and there"), and local energy use ("Invention must be found locally").
The text is a technical poem, a visionary collage of science, ecology, and philosophy, in the wake of the counterculture of the 1970s. It reveals Matta's closeness to thinkers like Buckminster Fuller, who interpreted the use of solar energy as a planetary revolution, believing that human society would soon be supplied with energy mainly from renewable sources.
€ 18.000,00
Starting price