Grossissement 1927

Serge Charchoune made this painting, Grossissement, with what looks like oil on canvas, though I'm not sure when. It's so compelling in its strangeness! I love the odd palette – that pale green with the touches of purple, gray, black, and brown. It's so awkward, yet kinda beautiful. The surface is built up with layers of paint. It's hard to tell exactly what's going on, but that's okay. Take a look at the shapes in the center, like magnified cells under a microscope. They have these outlines of dark brown and red. The shapes have this textured surface that almost glows. I wonder what it is, what Charchoune was thinking or feeling. I love how it doesn’t give us a clear answer. This piece reminds me a bit of some of Philip Guston's later work, where things get really raw and personal. It feels like Charchoune is letting us see something private, something he's trying to figure out himself. That's what I find so exciting about art – it's a way of exploring the unknown, both for the artist and for us.