Biomorphagrams: A History of the Future
by Matthew Wood

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From the Artist:

I call my works Biomorphagrams. These lyrical constructions are the product of exploring two concepts simultaneously: the objectification of shadows and making a painting without physically painting.

While living in New York City, I began photographing pedestrians’ shadows and exploring the possibility of them, the shadows, as objects. Ultimately, this investigation resulted in the “stylized” biomorphic forms that make up my Biomorphagram language.

Wanting to break free from traditional ways of making paintings I began working with and searching for alternative materials. Eventually, I stumbled across vintage Chromarama* paper; and more recently have begun incorporating large format, deadstock paint chip samples and vintage magazine cutouts. Influenced by Cubism, Abstract Expressionism and Surrealism while taking cues from such artists as Henri Matisse, Francis Bacon and Ambera Wellmann; Biomorphagrams are my homage to the past, present and future of abstract figurative painting.

*Chromarama is an art paper that was produced from the late 1960s to the early 1980s. The pigment/color was applied by silk-screen at the time of manufacturing. Hence, the paper was actually painted. It is the most rare paper of its kind.