Japan 1967

Curator: What a refreshing cascade of colour. There's such fluid movement, as if you're looking through foliage shimmering in the sun. Editor: Indeed. This is Else Alfelt's "Japan," a watercolour piece created in 1967. Alfelt, as you may know, was a Danish artist with a unique and often spiritually charged approach to abstraction. This particular work reflects that beautifully. Curator: Spiritually charged, yes! It has this kind of euphoric quality to it. Like nature at its most vibrant, but distilled. The blues are so bold amid all those greens; they really crackle. It’s an immersive visual experience, really drawing me into some private arboreal dream. Editor: It’s intriguing how the title points to “Japan," isn’t it? We could speculate about an aesthetic connection. Post-Impressionism and Japonisme coincided with her style and this abstraction, combined with the organic forms, evoke certain stylistic cues found in Japanese art. Curator: True, there's this airy quality that seems to drift right off the page, like a Sumi-e painting. Though what strikes me most is that this abstract world allows our imagination a freedom of association. Perhaps the experience of nature in a culture not your own? Editor: Exactly. During that period many museums and galleries across Europe presented comprehensive Japanese art exhibits and collections to the public. Else Alfelt likely visited such a showing, internalizing her perception, feelings and impressions of a distant culture. The title “Japan” only heightens her intent. Curator: Makes me think that all good art is travel, inner or outer. Alfelt must have taken us all on a rather fine trip with this work! Editor: An open ended trip indeed! An organic blend of personal intuition with post-impressionist modes of feeling. What's not to love?