The Wave 1944

Editor: Here we have Victor Pasmore's "The Wave," painted in 1944 using, it seems, acrylic paint. The muted colors create a rather melancholy mood, I think. What catches your eye about this piece? Curator: Melancholy, yes, that’s one way to describe it. I see a painting pregnant with longing. But I wonder, is it only sadness, or is there also a whisper of hope in that pale sunrise bleeding into the horizon? It makes me wonder what Pasmore was feeling then – what internal waves were crashing around him as he put brush to canvas during a time of global crisis. Do you think there's any sense of turmoil underneath the serene surface? Editor: That's interesting, I hadn't considered the historical context. I was focusing on the sort of, muted palette, and the almost dream-like quality, and missed that entirely! The wave itself seems so…fragile, not really a powerful wave. Curator: Precisely. Fragility is key. And doesn’t that say something powerful about our human experience? About how even the most overwhelming emotions can be fleeting, temporary… just like a wave. Now, look at the small dark shape in the foreground… What do you make of that? Editor: It almost looks like a solitary figure, gazing out at the scene. Maybe it *is* Pasmore himself? Curator: Perhaps, or a memory of a feeling made solid. It’s that personal connection, that willingness to imbue a landscape with inner emotion that truly defines abstract expressionism, don’t you think? It's the soul made visible, wasn't it? Editor: I think you're right. Seeing it as something so intimate and internal helps me appreciate its nuances a lot more. Curator: That's the beauty of art isn't it? One wave crashes upon the shore of our consciousness and suddenly everything looks different.