Summer 2015

Editor: Here we have Jose Higuera’s “Summer,” painted in 2015, using oil paint. The cool hues create this muted, almost dreamlike tableau of two young boys, and it makes me wonder what their story is. How do you interpret this work, considering its possible cultural context? Curator: It’s fascinating how Higuera uses realism, almost as a throwback, in our contemporary moment. Think about the public’s constant consumption of imagery - the photograph. And Higuera chooses to paint instead! I see him making a statement on image consumption itself: taking us back to an older mode of image-making that requires skill, precision, time. Does the painting ask us to slow down? To look closer? Editor: That's interesting. I hadn't considered it in relation to photography. Do you see a social narrative here? Curator: Yes, in some ways. Genre painting, which this evokes, has always been about capturing everyday life, making everyday life monumental. It also tends to romanticize it! Look at their clean, white clothes - they are kids, are they not supposed to be covered with dirt? Is he offering us a critique, an ideal, or both? I wonder about the setting too – is that bedsheet supposed to act as a minimalist or nonexistent background? Editor: It's true, it is a very idealized depiction of childhood. Curator: It makes you think, right? And that's exactly what I believe Higuera intended. The choice of oil paint also references art history and confers status! The museum or gallery wants us to think of history, artistry, value... which makes the painting worthy of our contemplation. And perhaps also a symbol of access to this tradition: who gets in, and who is left out? Editor: I appreciate the way you contextualized the painting, and connected it to its historical and social context! Thanks. Curator: Likewise. It is good to be reminded to look closely at how art serves culture and culture serves art.