Meksykañski zahót słońca nat stołem 2020

Lech Jankowski conjured this “Meksykañski zahót słońca nat stołem” – or, “Mexican sunset on the table” – using who-knows-what, somewhere, sometime. The title is almost like a dare, because this piece is all about texture, a really physical engagement with materials. It’s not polished, it’s raw, like a landscape, but close-up, like under a microscope. The surface is built up, crusty even, and the color palette is muted. There's a band of gold-ish yellow that looks like the sun, and the rest is just... gloom? But look closer and you'll see it has lilac, purple, gold and grey shimmering through. It’s all about this rough, tactile quality. Look at the way the lower band is scored. It reminds me of the paintings of Anselm Kiefer, if he made something small, playful, and a little goofy. Ultimately, it’s a reminder that painting is about pushing stuff around, embracing happy accidents, and letting the material speak.