Cupid And Psyche 2010

Editor: Here we have Alexander Roitburd’s "Cupid and Psyche," from 2010, crafted using mixed-media, primarily oil paint. I'm struck by the contrast; there's classical form rendered with the immediacy of graffiti. What can you tell me about it? Curator: Looking at the materials – oil paint, a traditionally ‘high art’ medium, juxtaposed with what appears to be acrylic or even oil stick for the linear elements reminiscent of graffiti - tells us a great deal. Roitburd challenges a traditional hierarchy, collapsing distinctions between skill, concept and media to question the systems that label ‘art’. How might the choice of 'low-brow' aesthetics affect its social consumption? Editor: So it's not just *what* is depicted, but also *how* it's depicted that matters? Curator: Precisely! The rapid, gestural lines of street art contrast the slower, more refined rendering of flesh tones with an established painterly vocabulary, speaking to both skilled craft and a kind of rebellious deconstruction. It is interesting to consider the amount of manual labor put in producing art vs. the act of mark-making with simple accessible tools that can be afforded by many within an urban context. Do you consider both actions equally 'valuable'? Editor: Well, the oil painting sections are so traditionally beautiful; it seems like it must take more… time and skill. The more 'raw' medium, combined with established rendering methods definitely brings something 'new' to this mixed-media image... Curator: Indeed, the juxtaposition highlights the inherent value judgments we make, tying skill to economic and cultural capital. Roitburd encourages us to examine how artistic value is constructed and who benefits from its definition. Editor: I guess I never thought about how much the actual stuff an artist uses could matter so much! Thanks for making me think differently about that. Curator: And thank you for exploring those questions with me!