Oath of the Horatii 2011

Editor: Here we have Alexander Roitburd’s “Oath of the Horatii”, an oil painting created in 2011. The figures are rendered in muted tones, almost like they're emerging from a sepia-toned photograph. I’m struck by the bizarre juxtaposition of what appear to be hooded figures and, well, what looks like giant salamis floating above them. What do you make of this composition? Curator: The strength of this piece lies in its calculated disruption of established visual language. Note how Roitburd echoes classical compositions, but the intrusion of these unexpected 'salamis' fractures any easy reading. The initial impression is, undeniably, one of disruption. This is achieved through both the oddity of the subject matter and the painting style. How does the texture, specifically the visible brushstrokes, contribute to your understanding? Editor: The brushstrokes do lend the piece a rawness that feels very deliberate. They disrupt any sense of idealized beauty that we might expect from a classical composition, while also contributing to the absurdity of the imagery. What is your read on the light in this piece? Curator: Light here serves less to illuminate and more to sculpt form. It casts stark shadows that heighten the sense of drama, but again, a drama divorced from any clear narrative. This deliberate withholding of narrative thrusts the viewer back onto the formal elements: the interplay of light and shadow, the rough impasto, the unsettling colour palette. The composition is balanced, but also feels weighted and uneasy, perhaps the lack of detail on the hooded figures adds to this sense of unease. Editor: So, by subverting expectations of traditional painting, the artist compels us to examine the core elements of the work, and the interplay of material, texture and the unexpected can change how we see. Curator: Precisely. It challenges our inherent drive for meaning, prompting a deeper consideration of pure form and the expressive potential inherent within it.