Satellite 1906 - 1926

Jozef Hanula made this painting, Satellite, with oil on canvas and it’s a real slow burner. At first, I saw a girl and some textiles, then I started noticing Hanula's particular way of seeing. The painting is rendered with a kind of soft, hazy naturalism and the material qualities are really seductive. The paint isn’t super thick, but it’s there, present in the folds of her white blouse, and then in the basket of fabrics. What are those? Socks? I love the colour combinations, the greens and reds, and the textures that Hanula creates with visible brushstrokes. The way he renders the folds of the white fabric around her neck is incredible! I'm reminded of other painters of the period - the French Realist painter, Courbet, springs to mind. Like Courbet, Hanula seemed to delight in depicting the everyday in a way that elevates it to something truly special.