Untitled (Onkel) 1965

Konrad Lueg painted this ‘Untitled (Onkel)’ and it looks like it was made with a stencil, using blues, whites, and a pop of orange. It feels like a painting made with a sense of humor. I can imagine Lueg thinking about his uncle, the one in the painting: Who was he? How did he dress? What was he like? Then thinking: what if I put him in front of some flowery wallpaper? It’s so unexpected, but so brilliant. I love how the wallpaper bleeds through the figure’s blue suit, like maybe he's not quite real, or he's blending into the background. That bright orange tie makes me think of a Lichtenstein painting, one of those Benday dot explosions. It makes me wonder if Lueg and Roy were hanging out, shooting the breeze, maybe inspiring each other’s art. It all makes you think about where ideas come from and how they're always bouncing around.