Deer Hunter 

Corneliu Michailescu made this painting, "Deer Hunter," using traditional materials and processes. The image shows a hunter in a brightly colored and patterned forest, taking aim at a deer, with dreamlike images interspersed. Michailescu has applied the oil paint in bold strokes, layering colors to build up form and texture. The way he defines the trees and the hunter's clothing, with their simplified forms, is reminiscent of folk art traditions. It is also reminiscent of Cubism, the European art movement interested in abstraction and the flattening of form. These elements, combined with the work's narrative subject, suggest a consciousness of social hierarchies, hunting being a leisure pursuit that has long been associated with nobility and wealth. The painting makes a visual connection between labor, art, and social class, inviting us to rethink the place of art in a society structured around inequality. It reminds us of the importance of context in understanding the full meaning of an artwork.