Cultivation of Dust for Mr. Bellmer 2019

Lech Jankowski made this evocative painting, Cultivation of Dust for Mr. Bellmer, using oil and mixed media on canvas. I wonder what it was like for Jankowski, standing in front of the canvas, mixing those greys and purples, coaxing the paint across the surface. It looks like he built up layers, maybe scraping some away. I like how he seems to cultivate a sense of decay with the colors - this muddy, in-between tone. The texture is rough, almost like disturbed earth, and then there are these rhythmic, almost graphic marks. It reminds me of Guston, that kind of searching, where the act of painting becomes a way of asking questions. The drips at the bottom edge look like tears, which create a feeling of vulnerability to the composition. Painting is a conversation, right? And, like any conversation, it’s about listening as much as talking, or, in this case, looking as much as making.