Roberto Matta was born on November 11, 1911, and brought up in Santiago, Chile. He was educated in his native country as an architect and interior designer at the Sacr Coeur Jesuit College and at the Catholic University of Santiago from 1929 to 1931. In 1933 he became a Merchant Marine which enabled him to leave Santiago and travel to Europe. In the 1930s he went to Paris where he studied architecture under LeCorbusier. At the end of 1934 Matta visited Spain, where he met the poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca, who through a letter introduced young Roberto to Salvador Dali. Dali in turn encouraged Matta to show some of his drawings to Andre Breton.

Matta's acquaintance with Dali and Breton strongly influenc...