Red Umbrella 1917

Józef Mehoffer created this oil painting, ‘Red Umbrella,’ sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. You can almost smell the linseed oil, solvent, and pigment. Oil paint is particularly interesting. It’s not just about the image, it's about the physical stuff of painting. Its qualities of viscosity, transparency, and drying time all dictate what kind of image can be created. Here, Mehoffer revels in the stuff of painting, deploying a range of brushstrokes to activate the surface of the canvas. This direct engagement with the materials of his craft would have been central to his artistic identity. Consider, too, that the making of oil paint relies on global trade. The pigments are sourced from minerals found across the world. The production of this painting is thus tied to labor, class, and consumption far beyond the boundaries of the garden he depicts. This expanded view challenges the traditional boundaries between fine art and craft.