Face and Figure 1948

Christo Coetzee created this painting, "Face and Figure," using expressive brushstrokes of oil on canvas. The density of the paint and the way he's applied it gives the work a real material presence. See how the forms seem to emerge from the colored grounds, almost as if sculpted. Look at the way the brushwork gives a woven effect to the orange area at the top of the painting; this draws your attention to the surface, as if the paint itself is competing with the figures for your attention. Coetzee was deeply interested in the qualities of his chosen medium. In making this work, he seems to be asking: can oil paint, through its inherent qualities and the artist’s labor, transcend its status as mere material and become something more? It’s in this meeting of material, making, and meaning that the distinction between ‘fine’ and ‘applied’ art starts to fade away.