Postcards 1971

This piece by Austrian artist Christian Attersee is called 'Postcards'. It's a playful concoction of imagery, probably made with acrylic or oil paint and maybe some collage. The way Attersee layers these postcard-like images, held up by a painted hand, it’s like he’s inviting us into his own mind. The color palette is so bold, almost jarring, but somehow it works. Check out the bottom, these cherubic figures erupting from flowers. And those arrows above that seem to suggest speed or direction. Attersee's paintings remind me of early David Hockney, that same embrace of a vivid, dreamlike reality. Like Hockney, Attersee makes you question what you think you know about the world. He reminds us that art isn't about finding answers, but about reveling in the endless possibilities of seeing.