‘April is the cruellest month’, wrote the poet T.S. Eliot in 1922. What happens when the energy and renewal of spring do not match one’s inner feelings? This subtle tension lies at the heart of Matthias Garcia’s first exhibition at Gerdman Gallery, bringing together works produced between 2024 and 2026.
The exhibition title, I have longed to move away, is borrowed from the poet Dylan Thomas, to which Garcia adds But it’s spring - a season that can feel overwhelming for those who resist it, yet also offers a gentle invitation to begin again, to renew oneself, in harmony with the natural world.
Spring, in Garcia’s work, is closely linked to the fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen, an important source of inspiration, and a literary compass for the artist. One in particular, The Princess and the Pea, plays a key role. Here, a young woman proves her exceptional, royal nature through her extreme sensitivity: she can feel a single pea hidden beneath a pile of mattresses. This sensitivity, often seen as a gift, can also feel like a burden. Small, invisible, and persistent, the pea becomes a symbol of the inner tensions of the imagination. This dreamlike world comes alive in Garcia’s practice. Like in fairy tales and myths, not only humans but also animals, plants, and objects seem to have their own presence and energy. Life appears everywhere, spreading and overflowing. Spring - especially in the Nordic region - can feel just like this: sudden, intense, almost magical.
Unlike the real world, which depends on clear categories and distinctions, the world of imagination is fluid and open to interpretation. In these paintings, faces and flowers seem to emerge in similar ways, and the idea of the mask appears often - either directly or in the still, almost timeless expressions of the figures. These figures are not clearly defined; they resemble silhouettes, spirits, or small angelic beings from an unknown belief system. Their quiet, mysterious presence suggests something sacred, beyond any specific story. As such, Garcia’s canvases do not illustrate fairy tales directly - they translate their narrative structure into visual form. Figures appear on soft, fluid backgrounds, sometimes involved in precise ceremonies, but often simply idle, like Andersen’s mermaids, who are destined to dissolve into foam. The works create an atmospheric space, reminding us of a shared human potential: the capacity to invent private and fleeting languages and worlds, much like we did as children.
Spring can feel like a renewal for some, for those who embrace its energy and responsibility. For others, it can bring imbalance between inner feelings and the external world. And yet, it is impossible to deny its beauty. Nothing lasts forever, not even suffering.
- Alexandre Desson, Paris, 2026 (translated from the original text in French)
