Sawing Wood 1940 - 1944

Arnold Peter Weisz-Kubínčan made this drawing, Sawing Wood, with ink and watercolour. The way he's used the wash of the watercolour reminds me that artmaking is a constant process of change. You begin with a mark, and then you respond, and that call and response keeps going. The earth tones create a sense of grounding, of physical labor, but the unexpected pop of yellow is really interesting. Like the logs are glowing from within. This use of light and shadow gives the whole scene a haunted, dreamlike quality. I'm drawn to the chaotic lines at the bottom of the page; they almost look like tangled roots. It's like the whole scene is emerging from the earth, from something primal and raw. Weisz-Kubínčan’s bold expressive style reminds me of other artists working outside the mainstream like Alfred Kubin, or even Emil Nolde. Art is an ongoing conversation, after all, a way of seeing and feeling that is always evolving.