Caged Animal by Matthew Shutt is a photorealistic painting depicting bright, vivid colours in a figurative representation of feelings and emotions. The colour palette is of bright colours and distinctive imagery not unlike American Pop Art found in mainstream artistic outputs.
Matthew Shutt resides in Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England. He attended the University of Huddersfield and put together his first solo exhibition in 2017 at the Bowery in Leeds.
Shutt's subjects are, at the surface, carefree images, predominantly action figures and associated memorabilia. Upon deeper observation, these images are symbolic of the nostalgia of an innocent childhood and a time of hope, brought to the present by the context of its surroundings in everyday objects like art books. The reality and stresses of adult life are superseded by notions of superheroes saving the day.