An Amazon Jungle 2010

David Michael Hinnebusch’s “An Amazon Jungle” is awash with colours applied in layers, like memory. It's a reminder that artmaking is a process, each stroke a step further into the unknown. You see, the physicality of the medium here is undeniable. Paint isn’t just on the canvas; it's built up, scraped back, dripped down, creating a landscape as dense as the jungle it depicts. There are transparent glazes sitting alongside opaque scrawls, and these create depth and tension. Look at the face in profile on the left, built up from blocks of colour outlined in thick black paint. It's cartoonish but also very present. It reminds me of work by artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat, in the way it grapples with identity and place through vibrant, chaotic compositions. Ultimately, this piece thrives on ambiguity, inviting us to bring our own interpretations to its riotous surface.