Inferno 1992

Editor: Right, here we have Šarūnas Sauka's "Inferno," painted in 1992. It's a rather overwhelming mixed-media piece, isn't it? The sheer density of figures and objects is quite striking. What do you see in this piece beyond just the initial visual chaos? Art Historian: Visual chaos is a good starting point. But think of it as organized chaos. This image evokes for me a deeply personal and perhaps even a collective cultural memory. Sauka, painting during a period of immense social upheaval in Lithuania, taps into a well of anxieties and uncertainties. Notice how the figures, while individual, are all subsumed within this claustrophobic space. What does that evoke for you? Editor: Confinement, definitely. Almost like being trapped in someone else's nightmare. I notice also the recurring motif of the journey, people lining up or in boats. Art Historian: Exactly. Journeys are powerful symbols of transition, of moving from one state to another. But what happens when the destination, represented here by that unsettling blue vortex, is unclear or even ominous? That void is unsettling because there is no ground, it could swallow anything and become anything. Does the color blue suggest anything particular for you? Editor: Calm? Though the scene isn’t very peaceful, a calm after some horrible storm perhaps, or something much darker than it appears on the surface? Art Historian: Precisely, you can get easily distracted with the chaos, when the vortex is inviting in a calm manner, in other settings might suggest divine purity. Perhaps that unsettling feeling is because this is where the eye goes when searching the artwork. I invite you to meditate a little longer on this chaos turned journey. Editor: It is kind of grim… Seeing this today has made me think about how artists can hold a mirror to our deepest fears. I guess that’s one power of art. Art Historian: Indeed. And by confronting those fears, by externalizing them in the form of imagery and symbol, perhaps we can begin to understand, and even to overcome them.