Composure 2020

Martine Johanna made this atmospheric figurative painting using thin layers of oil paint, allowing the colors underneath to peek through. It’s almost as if the figure has emerged through trial, error, and intuition. I really feel for the artist here, trying to capture that in-between moment of composure. What’s she thinking as she paints this woman leaning against what looks like a white wall? The artist is playing with the contrast between the graphic, decorative rug and the flat, almost ethereal background. That streak of blue on the white wall is so bold, so unexpected. It’s like a thought bubble or a flash of inspiration that pulls you into the painting. It reminds me of other contemporary figurative painters who, like Johanna, are in an ongoing conversation about how to represent the human form in a way that’s both realistic and dreamlike. It’s a reminder that painting is not about capturing a fixed image, but about embracing the ambiguity and uncertainty of seeing and feeling.