King of Pentacles 2020

Zoe Hawk made this "King of Pentacles" painting in the 20th Century, and it really gets me thinking about the process of painting and how we play with signs and symbols. I like how the paint is applied thinly and smoothly here. It almost feels like a stage set itself, complete with the red curtains, and the figure like an actor who has stepped out of a painting by Balthus. I find the way Hawk combines the mundane with the symbolic intriguing. The flat planes of color feel contemporary, but it is as though the scene is set in another time. Look at the mustache! It’s so obviously fake, like a child playing dress-up, but it adds to this feeling of ambiguity. Is she a king or isn’t she? This kind of playful challenge to fixed ideas reminds me of Magritte and his absurd juxtapositions. The painting invites us to question what we think we know, embracing the endless possibilities of interpretation.