The Newchild team invites you to join them for the opening of Pleasure Island, a solo exhibition by Viktor Mattson, marking the artist’s inaugural solo presentation at the gallery. One of today's most dynamic young figurative painters, Mattson is recognized for his adept simplification of art historical iconography and his consistent commitment to unravelling the constant moral struggles of humanity with both simplicity and humour.

Comprising 14 oil paintings on linen, Mattson has crafted a visual expedition to a realm of infinite pleasure, where the characters in his compositions find themselves entangled in a web of loss and despair. Devils, angels, clowns, and flowers transform into potent symbols conveying moral allegories that simultaneously offer an uncomplicated vision of the expansive possibilities of painting.

Viktor Mattsson (b. 1988 in Umeå, Sweden) received his MFA from Umeå Academy of Fine Arts and earned his BFA at the same university. His works have been exhibited across Europe and the UK. Recent solo and group exhibitions include Pleasure Island Newchild, Antwerp (2024; FACE TIME, PLUS-ONE Gallery, Antwerp (2023); Snakes in the Grass, Newchild, Antwerp (2023); Spring Spring, Moosey, London (2023); Between the Nightingale and the Lark, Ponti, Antwerp (2023); Thanks For Laughing, Weserhalle, Berlin (2022, solo); Adventures Of Pinocchio, Galleri Alva, Umeå (2022, solo); Art Antwerp, Ponti, Antwerp (2022); Know Thyself, Ponti, Antwerp (2022); Dream Baby Dream, Curated By Maria Abramenko, Off Space, Venice (2022); Another Spring, Diskus, Aalst (2022). His work is part of public collections at M HKA, Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp; The Public Art Agency Sweden; Luleå Municipality; Skellefteå Municipality, and Region Västerbotten. The artist lives and works in Antwerp.

Artists: Viktor Mattsson