Dramatic memory 1974

Rudolf Láng made this dreamlike scene with ink on paper. Look at the smudges and blurs. Imagine him, hand pressing down on the page, imprinting an image from his mind. You know, I think Láng was really feeling it when he made this. He was thinking about the past. There is something about the way the woman is drawn that gives an expression of sadness and the dog, maybe he lost something. The surface is kind of crusty and worn, which gives it a real sense of age, like some half-remembered fairytale. The dark brown color is contrasted with the ethereal blue, as if the memory is both beautiful and melancholic. The woman in the background stands near a table with a dog nearby. What does this tell us? The woman is wearing a dress, maybe she is getting married. It reminds me of Paula Rego’s illustrations of children stories, they have a similar sense of unease and mystery to them. Láng is part of this long conversation between artists, sharing their dreams, anxieties, and memories with us.