It’s the End of the World 2020

Valeria Duca has made this painting titled ‘It’s the End of the World’, but she hasn’t said when or with what. I see a figure in a state of… is it boredom? Exhaustion? Or is it just a Tuesday afternoon? The palette is muted—browns and blues, except for the vivid reds of the snack wrappers scattered around her. I imagine Duca working on this, layering paint, letting it drip, maybe wiping it away, building up the surface through trial and error. I feel the artist's sympathy for her subject—maybe even identification. What’s she thinking as she paints this? Is it a self-portrait? It reminds me a little of Paula Rego and Marlene Dumas. I love the brushstroke on her dress, it’s so delicate. There’s a contrast between the soft, flowing fabric and the hard, sharp edges of the wrappers. And that glove! I think it’s the most interesting thing about the picture, it feels totally out of place, like a magician has left the building. All painters, including Duca, are in conversation with one another across time. Each brushstroke is an echo of the past, a whisper of the future. Painting is an open-ended, embodied form of expression.