Arrest of the Propagandist 2009

Curator: Alexander Roitburd, a major figure in Ukrainian art, painted "Arrest of the Propagandist" in 2009. It’s oil and acrylic on canvas. Editor: My immediate reaction is…dizzying. There’s a fallen figure, an overturned clock, a giant beetle. The texture of the paint is very thick, very expressive. There is something unsettling. Curator: Absolutely. It’s Roitburd reflecting on the power of narrative and how easily it can be toppled. I find a subtle, sly humor even in his darkest works. It's like he’s saying, "Yes, things are absurd, but aren’t they also fascinating?" Editor: Yes, and that overturned clock – he’s playing with temporality. Time’s disrupted, maybe narrative itself is shattered. It creates a visually jarring composition: a very classical and rather formal central element-- the man, is made grotesque by this monstrous insect. What does the green of the bug bring to the image, aside from this ghastly feeling of unease? Curator: I always thought it was meant to evoke decay. The colour of decomposition but on this almost regal creature…almost ironic as an attribute to the central fallen figure in the composition. It is so heavy with symbolism and emotional heft but still feels accessible, immediate in the expression. It almost doesn’t need ‘decoding.’ It hits you right in the gut. Editor: Precisely, Roitburd makes sure that his symbolic vocabulary hits your body. He uses recognizable visual symbols, especially in terms of spatial construction but defamiliarises them to make them disturbing, like some kind of theatrical drama unfolding in one's mind! And there’s such depth of feeling embedded in that impasto, as if, perhaps the artist’s very psyche were worked into the material. Curator: Right, it invites us to feel deeply, think critically, and laugh, even when we are uncomfortable. Editor: This invites some consideration of my own pre-conceived notions. I shall leave here and go buy a green bug immediately. Thank you for your analysis.