Zádiel 1932

Ľudovít Čordák made this painting, called Zádiel, with oil on canvas. Look at the muted palette, the brushstrokes blending with the soft light. I’m imagining Čordák out there in nature, trying to capture the moody essence of the landscape. The colors are built up in these layers of soft grays and greens. A vertical rock face dominates the painting, and on the right, the yellows and browns of the trees give it a sense of depth. What was Čordák thinking when he put down that stroke of light green at the bottom? Was he trying to capture the light on the grass, or was he more interested in the texture of the paint itself? You get the feeling he was deeply engaged in the act of seeing. Painters like Čordák were in conversation with each other. They looked at what their predecessors were doing, and they built on that. It’s a chain of influence that stretches across time, each artist adding their unique perspective. Painting is like that, an ongoing conversation, full of gestures and feelings, always open to interpretation.