The Kiss 

Curator: Looking at Tom Lovell's "The Kiss," one's instantly struck by the, shall we say, concentrated atmosphere. Editor: Mmm, 'concentrated' is one way to put it. To me, the blue palette, with all those Buddha statues looming in the background, creates an almost otherworldly serenity disrupted by a surge of longing. It's not exactly subtle, is it? Curator: Not particularly, no! It's very... direct. What interests me from a production standpoint is how Lovell manages to imbue something so emotionally heightened with such economical brushstrokes. The loose handling of the woman's wrap, for instance, juxtaposed against the sharpness of the military uniform. Oil paint offers itself nicely to this dual nature. Editor: You know, for all its emphasis on these specific characters and what is presumably an intimate moment, it almost feels like a commentary on exoticism, wouldn’t you say? The composition itself – a soldier kissing a presumed “eastern” woman – hints at orientalism, which becomes so fashionable through commodities and travel... or conquest, and even mass manufacturing like for a book cover or calendar illustration. Curator: Interesting point, because I sense more yearning than appropriation. I see the figures reaching toward something almost in reach, but then there's that ethereal backdrop filled with religious imagery – as if hinting at transcendence or something beyond themselves. It definitely creates a very distinct, dramatic space. Editor: Maybe... I just find it difficult to separate that particular brand of yearning from the social and economic context from which it's derived. The mass appeal speaks volumes. But back to the materials – do you think that perhaps the almost sketched quality of the finish was done to facilitate mass reproduction? Curator: Could be. Whatever the reason, Lovell successfully marries art historical approaches with popular taste to craft images that, whether for pulp fiction or not, strike a profound chord of longing. Editor: It does that, for sure. Even if you unpack its construction bit by bit, there's something undeniably emotionally resonant, despite the rather complicated dynamics within the pictorial space, no matter the means. Curator: Yes. All the details work so efficiently together. This reminds me we still don't know for what venue the artwork was initially commissioned. A detail to chase down in the near future.