The Wanderer 2013 Acrylic on canvas 50x50cmWhen watching over the shoulder of the protagonist of this painting, we can see a village or small town in the distance. To reach this, the man probably has to take a bridge. The man still has a long way to go. Is this town the final destination of the man? The title suggests not. We can’t find out much of the man who is turned with his back to us. In some way the man doesn’t belong in this picture. His clothes and briefcase don’t suggest that he is a vagabond. On the other hand you don’t suspect an employee with briefcase at foot in this kind of desolate road, far away from civilization. You expect him on a busy train, queuing in a line of cars or walking on a hectic sidewalk of a city, targeted on his way to his office. The mysterious atmosphere is amplified by the hazy brush strokes and the chiaroscuro. The canvas consists of pronounced dark and light parts. The border between dark and light is formed between the diagonal line from the right upper corner to the left bottom corner. Because of htis, the man is placed in the darker part, the destination in the lighter part. Because the man is on the foreground -and as a result bigger- he first draws the attention, but shortly after that, the eye is lead to the lighter horizon. The title of the painting could be a reference to the painting with the same name of Caspar David Friedrich. On this painting you can also see a sharp dressed man, seen from the back, staring over a see of mist. Here, also a strong light-dark contrast is present. Or maybe it is a contemporary adaptation of an Old English poem about a wanderer who finally sees the light after long nostalgic musing? Of maybe it is a reference to the U2 song with the same name, which starts like this: I went out walking Through streets paved with gold Lifted some stones Saw the skin and bones Of a city without a soul I went out walking Under an atomic sky … It would be a feat if Boss had all 3 references in mind when making this painting.
Categorie archieven: misty
Couple
Couple 2013 Acrylic on canvas 50x50cmWhoever catches a first glimpse of this odd painting, is confused. The brain of the spectator needs some time to transform the abstraction of the first flash into an image representing a path neer a canal. After a moment, one might notice the couple on the path, the title of the painting refers to. In the distances an anonymous little village looms in the haze that is covering the scene from the prying eyes of the viewer. Three dark parts dominate the canvas: the path and two areas of hillsides covered with trees. The positioning of the dark hillsides against the radiant horizon light and the alternation of dark and light strips, create a gaudy image. The comosition and the spear-shaped ornaments are positioned in a way it leads the eye automatically to the horizon and the couple. It seems like the artist is playing a game with the spectator (without this last one noticing it): from one hand, the cleverly chosen composition forces the eye to watch where the artist wants it to watch. On the other hand, the haze and vagueness of the contours make it hard to peek.
Misty Landscape with Village
Misty Landscap with Village 2013 Acrylic on canvas 40x40cm
This small piece of art gives an impressionistic impression. In contrast to the other works in the series of haze paintings, no persons are present. At the horizon, the contours of a typical Flemish village can be noticed. The details of the landscape are lost in the veils of the haze floating above the meadows.
Man in a long black coat
Man in a long black coat 2013 Acryl op hardboard 130x70cmA dark, shady figure is walking away from the viewer on a lonely street, heading for the misty horizon. The arid landscape is being dominated by ochres, sienna and earth shades. The strong shadows within this widescreen painting create an enduring atmoshpere, reminding of a Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western. And in this case, the Man in the Long Black Coat would be played – without any doubt- by Clint Eastwood.
(door P.O.)
Walking Nude
The Runner
Keeping Up
Keeping up 2013 Acrylic on canvas 50x50cm
Just like all other works in the series of hazy works, this work is about loneliness and isolation. An elderly man is following the trail of approximately seven young people. He persist in trying to keep up with them, but it is clear that he won’t hold it much longer anymore and that he will have to unhook with them.
The old man who is at risk of being left behind, will end up this way in a state of loneliness and isolation. A metaphor for the general aging in our society.
Old man with beret
Old man with beret 2013 Acrylic on canvas 50x50cmAn old man slaunters along a frontage. Hardly targeted he wanders arduously through the familiar streets of his home town. The old man himself has become part of the scenery. The wall seems endless. This doesn’t make it clear where he comes from or where he is heading to. Maybe he is just taking a walk to pass time? The elderly man is sketched with little detail keeping his identity hidden and turning him into a universel persona for an old man. Despite the sloppy painted haze, the luminosity and the decor suggest a Provençal atmosphere, but it is impossible to guess the location precisely. All this fuzziness and the lack of a concrete context is used on purpose to arise questions. Who is this man? Where does he come from? Where is he heading to? Why is he wandering around? These kind of questions are a leitmotif in the series of misty paintings. This way, an appearantly simple and idyllic scenery has become a universal excercise in existentialism.