Luna 7, Subiaco 1967

Curator: "Luna 7, Subiaco" is a fascinating landscape by William Congdon dating to 1967. It is an oil paint and matter painting—quite evocative. Editor: It truly is. It evokes this feeling of almost complete darkness, then that small, spectral light appears. There’s something strangely hopeful about it. Is it just me? Curator: I think that reading is quite apt! You have to think of Congdon’s time at Subiaco, in Italy. In 1960 he embraced monastic life there after periods of living between Europe and New York becoming acquainted with the abstract expressionist style in that period. Editor: Ah, that explains it! It does feel like it draws heavily from abstract expressionism. That’s an amazing life shift, by the way, moving into monastic life! You can definitely sense that inner searching, almost a yearning, within the piece. Curator: Indeed. The thick impasto builds up the landscape—in shades of charcoal grey. The almost volcanic darkness versus that glimmer of pale, heavenly hope – it speaks to his deep contemplation of spirituality after this significant life decision. And, if you consider the title, Luna 7, one might perceive a more concrete reference: the Soviet Luna 7 probe crashed in 1966! Editor: Wow, that's heavy, both literally and metaphorically. So it is alluding to something much larger, perhaps the shattered dreams of scientific exploration against the backdrop of the infinite and the unknowable. Is this also suggesting the probe is, in its own way, also reaching out to the heavens in futility? I can't decide if it's bleak or… defiant. Curator: It strikes me as both! There’s a distinct push and pull to it. Congdon captures the tensions that mark his spiritual and intellectual pursuits. His matter-painting style really gives depth to it, it allows you to feel the texture and volume. Editor: Right. Knowing that, seeing it—I read even more of a dialogue, the earth's shadowed reality meeting that single point of ethereal light… Maybe that defiance becomes a quiet sort of prayer. It's a fascinating, troubled piece. Curator: Yes, the intersection between innovation and introspection seems fitting. I'm glad we spent some time examining William Congdon's captivating landscape.