Coronation of Sesostris 2000

Editor: At first glance, it's as though light itself is taking shape here, a radiant outburst rendered in yellow and dissolving into an ethereal ground. Curator: We are currently observing Cy Twombly's "Coronation of Sesostris", completed in 2000. Executed in acrylic paint, this piece manifests elements of abstract expressionism, and notable impasto application techniques. Editor: "Coronation", huh? The title feels deliberately ironic, juxtaposed with what appears to be an exercise in pure gesture, and color, devoid of traditional symbolic devices usually related to power. What about the production methods here? Curator: Certainly, Twombly challenges representational conventions by foregrounding materiality and technique. Note the fluid drips and layered scumbles. His handling of paint serves as a metaphor for ephemerality, questioning the stability of historical narratives. I should like to focus on that, how does the application itself give meaning? Editor: Thinking about the actual application – look closely. The materiality reads against your idea of ephemerality, I believe. The surface seems aggressively reworked, scrubbed, and smeared, so it is not a stable crown but a laborious palimpsest. I consider it closer to craft than to the history. Curator: Your point resonates regarding the tension. The deliberate awkwardness, combined with that palatial golden colour, further amplifies this reading. The effect is intentionally jarring, forcing the viewer to reconcile perceived value with raw materiality. This contradiction functions semantically. Editor: Perhaps he sought to demystify authority? By revealing the labour, he undermines the spectacle of crowning moments. So he shifts meaning production to materials rather than, let us say, classical motifs. Curator: Agreed. The very act of deconstruction becomes a powerful tool, compelling one to reconsider embedded beliefs that so many other historical moments demand unquestioned. Thank you for the interesting take. Editor: The delight is mine. By tracing gesture we may learn history in tactile mode.