Bread 1976

Horia Bernea made this painting of bread in 1976 with oil on canvas, and I love how it looks like an action. The canvas is thick with paint; it’s rough and textured, you can see the marks made by the brush. He’s not trying to hide anything about how it was made. The colors are muted, mostly browns and greens, but with these bright dabs of red that bring the painting to life. The painting is a crusty landscape. Look at the way the white paint is applied, almost like he’s building up the crust layer by layer. It makes me think of Courbet, another artist who was interested in the real, everyday world. This is not just bread, it’s an idea about what painting can be, too. Something real, something felt.