Testa 2 

Hans Richter created Testa 2 using oil paint sometime during his career which spanned both World Wars and a deep dive into Dadaism. As a movement, Dada sought to critique the established order through absurd and irrational works. Here, Richter seems to be dismantling the idea of portraiture. The title, "Testa," which means head in Italian, hints at a human subject, but what we see are geometric forms in muted browns and greens, a far cry from traditional representations of the human form. Perhaps the sharp angles and fractured planes suggest the fragmentation of identity, reflecting the post-war disillusionment and the shifting sense of self in a rapidly changing world. What does it mean to break down the very idea of a head, a face, in the wake of such widespread trauma and loss? “Art must be violently opposed to everything which causes wars,” Richter once said. This is an expression of that sentiment.