Au Wihlering II 2021

Gazmend Freitag made Au Wihlering II, a 120 x 120 cm painting, sometime around 2021. The all-over-ness of it grabs me, how the entire canvas is alive with marks. I love the way Freitag builds up the image with these flickering strokes of green and yellow, giving it a real sense of movement and shimmer. You can almost feel the sun dappling through the leaves. Up close, the texture is amazing. The paint's not too thick, but you can see the individual brushstrokes, how he’s layered color upon color to create this luminous effect. Look at how the reflections in the water are just as solid as the trees themselves, blurring the line between reality and reflection. It’s as if the whole scene is breathing. This reminds me of those late Monet paintings, all soft edges and dissolving forms, but with its own unique energy. Ultimately, it's a painting that reminds us that art is never really finished, just in a constant state of becoming.