Maybe it’s my overactive imagination, but I feel like I see lovers embracing in this work – the lines are there, the emotion is there, the sense of movement is there. But, then again, I am the weird kid.
Tag: painting
Thursday
Of all the contemporary/modern artists on display at SLAM, Gerhard Richter is my favorite. I know how that sounds, but I adore all of the pieces of his that the museum owns – including this one. I hadn’t seen it before they unveiled the Bauhaus retrospective exhibition, but I kept coming back to it and going, “Oh, I love that so much.” I hadn’t even looked at the plaque, just the painting itself – and then suddenly, it all made so much sense. It has a very dreamy feel, much like Grey Mirrors (literally grey paneled mirrors) and Betty (a portrait version of his daughter), while maintaining an almost abstract version of real objects.
Wednesday
One thing about Cezanne: you can’t mistake his work for anyone else’s. It’s too distinct, even within the repetitious Impressionist movement.
Tuesday
Another example of the ‘small but mighty’ club, this panel painting is a precursor to the impressionist dynastic linage of Monet, Manet, and Degas. You can see hints of what would become Monet’s outdoor inspiration in the skyline’s coloring and the execution of the sand, and the juxtaposition of colors speaks of Manet and a bit of van Gogh, if you had to point to those who took their inspiration from these earlier works.
Monday
This painting looks more like a crayon sketch than a painting in many ways, and I think that’s why I like it so much. It isn’t studied or overly pretentious in any way whatsoever.
Saturday
This particular work was one of the most hyped pieces of newly acquired art in the SLAM collection in 2019, and with good reason: it is absolutely beyond visually striking. Beyond its visual appeal, its cultural impact is like a meteor strike in this city: this is not just a painting. This is a movement, a symphony, a riot in C Major.
Friday
There is no right or wrong way to view or interpret this painting. The way I feel about it is not the way you may feel about it; the way I believe that it communicates may not be the way you believe it communicates. There is no one size fits all. And that is very important.
Thursday
There are so many, many things I can say about this work, but coming from a place of white privilege, they will sound trite or even out of touch. I don’t want to sound that way, so I will say this instead:
This work, however much it speaks of darkness and pain, also speaks of hope. It is powerful because it is full of hope and dreams.
Monday
I’ve loved this painting desperately since the first time I saw it. There’s something both quirky and subtle about it, while all the time being emotionally engaging. The sensation of motion, the pull of the waves and sounds of the ocean and cries of the gulls are just as loud as the colors on the canvas, and they reach out to you from the paint, crying out to be heard.
Friday
This, again, is another one of those bridges between Baroque and Rococo that doesn’t quite fit either genre but shares elements of both movements.