Roberto Matta

Architecturally-trained, Matta worked as a draughtsman for Le Corbusier, and later, briefly, for Gropius and Moholy-Nagy in London. He met Neruda and Lorca while visiting his aunt in Madrid: Lorca gave him a letter of introduction to Dalí, who introduced him to Breton. Tanguy was both friend and mentor; Duchamp also influenced him. In New York, he acted as a link between the exiled surrealists and younger American artists, influencing Pollock, Motherwell (who accompanied him to Mexico) and others. Gorky was a close friend, though Matta had an ill-timed affair with his wife. Matta-Clark was his son.