Winter day 1970

Ivan Generalic’s “Winter Day” presents a vivid tableau of rural life, likely crafted with oil on glass. The figures are outlined with care, and the color is laid on flatly. I can imagine Generalic, focused, deliberately placing each figure, each house, as if setting up a stage. Look at that red cow! It's like he's taken a child's drawing and made it real with a heavy dose of charm and a pinch of folk wisdom. You get the sense that he’s conjuring memories, stories, that are part of the lived-in world of rural Croatia, where he was from. It makes me think of other self-taught artists, like Grandma Moses, who painted their surroundings and turned them into art, with that same naive touch and vibrant spirit. These artists are not afraid to paint what they see, mixing the everyday with a bit of imagination, and inviting us to see the world through their eyes, too.