Landscape with trees 1927

Curator: Let's talk about Konstantin Bogaevsky's "Landscape with Trees" from 1927. He uses oil paint to create this otherworldly vision. What strikes you first? Editor: Those trees in the foreground! They’re all gnarled and looming like watchful sentinels. It gives the whole scene this air of brooding mystery. Almost gothic, wouldn’t you say? Curator: It's fascinating to consider Bogaevsky’s interest in depicting the landscape in almost geological terms. Look how he layers the paint, building up textures that echo the rocky terrain. The way materials are applied and their provenance speak to an exploration beyond surface level beauty. Editor: Absolutely, but that's what landscape painting always offers isn't it, both material record and a poetic impression? I’m drawn to the sky – all those shifting cloud formations, lending such dramatic light to what would otherwise be a very still scene. It feels vast, a bit melancholy even, as if the land holds secrets. I bet a great myth happened there. Curator: His symbolism leans heavily on notions of lost civilizations and perhaps the cyclical nature of history. His Crimea roots also play a part in the materials he selects, but most importantly in what they help convey about his heritage. Editor: Right, like memory made solid, brushstroke by brushstroke. The layering almost buries something and invites the viewer to perform some archeology, so we too can dig up what came before. Curator: Perhaps we each bring our own lost worlds to it, filling the gaps he intentionally leaves. Editor: Exactly! And the more materials become involved the more of their story the art is eager to reveal. Curator: Precisely! An active collaboration in understanding his material legacy and those who worked to help shape the world through its offerings. Editor: Thanks! What an enigmatic world for our ears, now made visible. Curator: Indeed!