Magical Forms 1945

Lorser Feitelson conjured these ‘Magical Forms’ with oil paint, in a time that we don’t know. The colours are murky, moody, like a bruise, or twilight just before night. The paint looks thin, brushed on in layers that don’t quite meet, leaving a kind of ghosting between the forms. Look at the way that grey form on the left almost melts into the background, but then it’s pulled back into focus by that thin, yellow line. It’s like Feitelson is asking, what does it mean for something to be present, and what does it mean to disappear? This interest in forms emerging from the shadows reminds me of some of the early surrealists, like Yves Tanguy, with his biomorphic shapes floating in ambiguous landscapes. Both artists seem interested in the way that art can evoke a sense of mystery and uncertainty, rather than offering fixed or definitive answers.