Frau, zwei Flugzeuge, Bomben c. 1940

Karl Wiener made “Frau, zwei Flugzeuge, Bomben” with paint and collage and maybe a little ink. It's a process of building up a surface, adding and subtracting. Look at how the figure is built up, this layering of colour and texture. Her body is this playful composition of geometric forms, each with its own distinct texture and material quality. The juxtaposition of these elements creates a sense of fragmentation, as if the figure is being assembled or disassembled before our eyes. See the torso: a flat area of bright red, that almost looks as if it’s been sunburnt, with a little red dot, just there. The background has a dreamy blue-green hue, like something seen through water. The airplanes, the bombs, and buildings give a sense of narrative, though the relationship between figure and setting remains ambiguous. In a strange way this reminds me of Picabia. I like that there’s room for all sorts of interpretations.