Post Surreal Configuration: Eternal Recurrence 1940

Lorser Feitelson made this painting, 'Post Surreal Configuration: Eternal Recurrence,' without specifying when or how, but it unfolds with a muted palette and soft contours, like a dream half-remembered. The approach feels intuitive, each form flowing into the next. The surface is smooth, and the paint looks thinly applied, creating a sense of depth and mystery. I'm drawn to how the figures emerge from the background, their forms defined by light and shadow rather than hard edges. The man in the center, hunched over with a pickaxe, seems trapped in an endless loop, dwarfed by the looming presence of the reclining nudes. Is he digging his own grave? Feitelson's work reminds me a little of de Chirico, with its enigmatic imagery and unsettling atmosphere. Like all great art, this painting invites us to ask questions rather than providing easy answers.