Irrigatoren 2007

Alfio Giuffrida made "Irrigatoren" without indicating when, using an approach to mark making which seems very controlled, yet vibrant. The painting's surface feels flat, even though it's made with oil on canvas. I imagine Giuffrida carefully layering color to achieve this flatness, and making forms that intersect like cut-out shapes placed one on top of the other. There is an interesting shape at the bottom of the canvas – is it a nozzle? A toy? It gives me a sense of playfulness, even though the composition is very precise. The careful delineation of forms creates crisp edges, contributing to the painting’s graphic quality. "Irrigatoren" strikes me as sharing something with Pop Art and Minimalism, but it has a unique and quirky personality. It reminds us that art is always in conversation with what came before, pushing boundaries in new directions.