Dedication to Richard Wagner's neighbor 2009

Iurie Matei mixed media work, titled 'Dedication to Richard Wagner's neighbor' is a loaded scene— theatrical even. I can imagine Matei layering the work, adding new images and objects as if building a stage set. It’s interesting to consider Matei thinking about Wagner's world, and then imagining his neighbor, and creating an image that somehow ties them together. The result is very strange and surreal! I sympathize with the artist having to pull together all these different strands. The materiality of the work—the paint, the strange objects and images—adds to the feeling that nothing is quite fixed. I notice the figure on the right seems to be holding a shield—but maybe it's a mirror, or a plate? I love how Matei doesn't try to resolve all the tensions. This openness reminds me of other artists like Sigmar Polke and Kurt Schwitters, who also embraced fragmentation. In painting, there are no fixed answers, just ongoing questions and creative exchange.