Verbunden 2016

Siegfried Zademack made 'Verbunden' with oil. What strikes me first is how the artist's process isn't obscured at all; you can almost feel the push and pull of the brush. Looking closely, there's a real focus on the material reality of the paint – how it behaves, its texture, its capacity for light. It's neither thick nor thin, but applied with a certain control, a precision, that builds up the forms and gives them weight. Look at the woman's flesh; it's rendered with a sort of luminosity that gives her a tangible presence. It's like Zademack is saying, "Here, look at what paint can do!" It reminds me a little of Jenny Saville, in the way she uses paint to explore the human form, but with a slightly different sensibility. Both artists embrace ambiguity, inviting us to bring our own interpretations to the table.