Mountains 1948

Else Alfelt made this painting called “Mountains” with what looks like oil paint, and I imagine it was a real wrestling match between her and the canvas. The palette is earthy, with greens, browns, and blues, all kind of muted and mixed. When I look at it, I think about her standing in front of the canvas, maybe stepping back and squinting, trying to figure out how to make these pointy shapes feel like mountains. Each stroke feels like a decision, a little push and pull between what she saw and what she felt. You know, painting mountains is an old trick, right? But she's not just copying nature. Alfelt takes those shapes and twists them, almost like she’s inventing a new kind of mountain, one that's more about feeling than seeing. It reminds me a little bit of Hilma af Klint, who was also into these kinds of spiritual landscapes. The real beauty of painting is that it’s always open to interpretation, and there are no right answers. The artist, the viewer, the painting… we’re all just in a conversation, trying to figure things out together.