Sonnenuntergang, Borkum 1928

Alexej von Jawlensky made this painting of a sunset at Borkum, likely with oil on canvas, capturing the end of the day in a series of layered marks. I can just imagine the painting coming into being, shifting and emerging through the application of colour, thick daubs, and intuition. The paint is neither too thick nor too thin. It is applied to the surface in a way that allows each colour to maintain its integrity. I wonder what Jawlensky might have been thinking, or feeling? Probably something about nature, and spirituality, and the point of life itself. The horizon line pulses, and the brushstrokes, while loose, are each carefully considered, as though the painting were constructed with little bricks of colour. This approach reminds me of other painters like Emil Nolde, who explored similar territory. Ultimately, artists are in an ongoing conversation, inspiring one another’s creativity across time. Painting, after all, is a form of embodied expression that embraces ambiguity, allowing for multiple interpretations.