Komposition 1931

Otto Gustav Carlsund made this geometrical composition using cool, neutral colours and a limited palette. I wonder what it felt like for Carlsund making this. I imagine he was interested in the construction of forms, and the painting almost looks like a study of spatial relationships, as if he's trying to find the underlying structure of things. You see how the forms are layered and how the lines and shapes intersect? It’s so clever. It reminds me of the De Stijl movement, with its emphasis on pure abstraction and simplification. There’s a sense of order and balance, but also a kind of playful experimentation with form and space. He’s definitely in conversation with other artists through this work. For me, painting is always about this kind of exchange, this ongoing dialogue between artists across time, inspiring each other's creativity. And it's never about fixed meanings. It is more about the ambiguity that makes things interesting!