The Utopia Series
With his Utopia series, Matthews pays homage to the spirit of St Barth and the creative debt that he owes to the island. Matthews’s singularly meditative and enticing representations of the island’s landscapes, flora and fauna celebrate St Barth as both subject and muse. For an artist whose body of work represents a longing to escape the chaos of modernity, the unmatched beauty and quiet seclusion of our small island embodies the promise of utopia.
A visitor of the island for 30 years, the light, energy and the island’s vibrant vegetation has become a mecca for the artist – calling him back year afteryear. Informing his work and entering into his imagination, the islands rolling hills and folding roads have made a map in his mind of his memories and experiences. Familiar territory and imagery are celebrated on his canvases in his signature pure white style.
Well known for his depiction of landscapes of his native New York, these delicate elegant paintings recall the flora and fauna of this island utopia. “Somewhere there's an inner feeling of serenity and peace among all living things..
From humans to insects to mammals to earth.The
connection is there all around us.” -Victor Matthews