Kirche Im Prerow c. 1911

Alexej von Jawlensky made this painting of a church, probably in oil paint, with lots of reds and greens and blacks. I love how the image has come into being through trial, error, and intuition. I sympathize with Jawlensky, imagining what it must have been like to create it. I wonder what he was thinking when he made it? The paint is so juicy, thick, and tactile. Just look at the marks around the window and the fence! See how those brushstrokes really define the form. The physicality of the medium shapes our experience of the painting, contributing to the emotional resonance of the work. That upward stroke to the left of the church can communicate so much—an impression of height, feeling, and intention. Jawlensky and other painters are in an ongoing conversation, in an exchange of ideas across time, inspiring one another’s creativity. Painting is a form of embodied expression which embraces ambiguity, allowing for multiple interpretations.