On the Way Home 1974 - 1975

Curator: Josef Herman's piece, "On the Way Home," held here at the Tate, presents us with a starkly rendered scene. Editor: My first thought? A silent film still. The limited palette and blocky figures give it such a vintage, almost somber feel. Curator: Indeed. The figures themselves are archetypal, almost iconic. Consider the hooded rider – echoing centuries of symbolic portrayals of travelers and wanderers. Editor: And that crescent moon, repeated almost like a mirrored thought – is it a promise or a warning? I can't decide. Curator: Perhaps it's both. The journey home is rarely simple; it's laden with cultural expectations and psychological burdens. Editor: I like that—a visual representation of the complexities of homecoming. Even with these basic shapes, there's an emotional depth here. Curator: Precisely. Herman captures the weight of tradition and individual experience in deceptively simple forms. Editor: It’s definitely lingered with me. There's this quietude about the piece that's really compelling.