Cheerful 2017

Curator: "Cheerful," a 2017 matter-painting crafted with acrylic paint, by Nemanja Vučković. What leaps out at you? Editor: Purple rain! Though it feels more like an implosion than an explosion, everything is drawn to the center like some galactic violet void. Definitely moody, not so sure about cheerful… Curator: It's interesting you say implosion, as explosive color certainly can denote dynamism, but it often represents some disruptive event, culturally and historically. I can see both in the overall form. I’d describe this picture as radiating from a focal point in all directions. Editor: I think what gives me pause on the 'cheerful' claim is this deep reliance on purples, with hints of muddy browns and yellows underneath. To me, those colors read more as somber. I would name it ‘Brooding’ and walk away. But… where's the matter in the matter painting? Is it just texture? Curator: The matter relates to an expanded range of mediums; a tendency to experiment with the very materiality of paint. Note, for example, the almost stucco-like layering and texture across the center. The rough handling of paint lends it a tangible presence. Speaking of texture, doesn’t purple have complex connotations? Editor: Absolutely! It straddles so many lines: royalty and spirituality, but also bruise-like pain. This artwork has a duality; some slashes evoke freedom, yet there’s containment. Those whites flecks; they save it. What about the abstract-expressionist influences? Are they meaningful here? Curator: In Abstract Expressionism we have those grand, sweeping gestures charged with subjective meaning. Think of someone like Franz Kline. And the emotion on display is critical; that comes across to you? Editor: Well, maybe a more internal cheerfulness? A party for one inside the soul, fought for and slightly melancholic. So, okay, maybe I’m on board now with the cheer, if bittersweet. Curator: Precisely! Its ambiguous iconography invites diverse interpretations. In this whirlwind, is the emotion honest? Authentic? Those may be more salient than the immediately obvious sentiment. Editor: Okay, I can dig that! Well, that's made me rethink my quick judgement of this canvas. A valuable insight. Curator: Indeed! I find such open-ended symbols perpetually fascinating as mirrors of our own complexities. Thank you!