Beside You 

Editor: So this is "Beside You," an oil painting by Cathrine Edlinger-Kunze. There's a figurative element to it, but it leans towards abstraction. I’m struck by the materiality of the paint, the way it’s built up in layers. How do you see this piece? Curator: For me, it's crucial to examine the labor inherent in the creation of the artwork. Oil paint is a very traditional material, but here it's deployed in a way that challenges conventional representation. Consider the visible brushstrokes, the layering of pigment. What do these choices suggest about the artist’s relationship to the act of painting itself? Editor: That's interesting! I was just thinking about the figures and the expressive qualities of the painting... I hadn't considered it in terms of the labor involved. Do you mean that by using oil paint in such an apparent, almost raw manner, she is commenting on the means of artistic production? Curator: Precisely! Look at the areas where the canvas seems almost unfinished. This directs our attention to the process, to the decisions made during the act of painting. Think about what art making means for female artists. Has it become work? Editor: It seems like she is asking questions through materiality... What statements about modern identity or the current society can she possibly evoke? Curator: Indeed, and remember the tradition within which painting practices operate. Editor: Okay, I understand better now how the choice of materials, and even the unfinished quality, isn’t just aesthetic, it's deeply connected to the socio-economic context of art production. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure! It’s through analyzing these material processes that we gain a more thorough appreciation of what art means today.