Seddummprc 1967

Jaroslav Serpan made Seddummprc with oil paint, I imagine, pushed around with knives, brushes and rags; built up and scraped back, again and again. I like to think about what it was like for Serpan to make this painting. The light blue and green stripes, against the white, like a horizon line, are interrupted by these black and white floating islands of aggressive texture. They become like thoughts in the painter’s head, sharp, fragmented, and a little bit scary. Look at the way the shapes are built up with thick, almost sculptural paint. Each mark is like a record of his movement, energy, and feeling. Think about the conversation he was having with other painters, maybe someone like Fautrier, pushing the limits of the medium itself. Painting is a process, a dialogue between the artist, the materials, and the history of art. It’s never fixed or resolved, but always open to new possibilities.