Untitled 

Kinder Album created this untitled painting, sometime after 1982. Here, they offer a vision of contemporary life that takes place in a formal garden. The cultural references in this painting are rich and strange. The two men in black suits, the nude woman in heels, and the statue of a young girl with a hose could be figures from a dream, or perhaps they are commenting on the social expectations of contemporary life, particularly the conventions around gender and power. The setting is interesting as well, with its echoes of the formal gardens of Europe. What does it mean to set these contemporary figures in such a traditional, old-world, and highly regulated setting? Is the artist suggesting a kind of disconnect between the conventions of the past and the realities of the present? Or is it commenting on the enduring power of traditional institutions? As art historians, it is our job to look at a painting like this and ask questions about its cultural and historical context. By researching the artist’s background, the social and political climate in which they were working, and the traditions of painting and sculpture that they were engaging with, we can begin to understand the complex and layered meanings of this enigmatic image.