Penalties 1975

Don Ivan Punchatz made this painting, "Penalties," and look at the way he teases out the forms with light and shadow. It’s all about the process, the layering, and how each stroke builds on the last. The rendering of the hand, in this vibrant teal, is so striking. See how the color is almost unreal, yet the texture feels so palpable? You can almost feel the weight of that cigarette between the fingers, the heat radiating from the burning tip. There’s something about the smoothness of the hand that contrasts with the jagged edges of the sword, creating this tension, like a moment frozen in time. It makes me think of Philip Guston, how he used these everyday objects to explore deeper emotional truths. Like Guston, Punchatz invites us to find our own meaning in the ambiguity.