Abstraction 1912

Christian Rohlfs created this oil painting titled “Abstraction," in which a dense composition of blue, white, and hints of orange and red dominates. The forms appear as shards or abstracted floral shapes, creating an almost mosaic-like surface. The artist's energetic brushstrokes give the painting a palpable sense of movement and texture. Rohlfs’s marks destabilize any fixed form. We see how he challenges conventional representation. The strategic use of colour and form invites a semiotic interpretation. The blue might evoke a sense of depth and the infinite. Conversely, the white shapes cut through the blue, acting as signifiers of a new, disruptive order. The high degree of abstraction pushes the work beyond mere representation. Consider the dense and chaotic composition. It challenges our perception and underscores modern art's move toward emphasizing the intrinsic qualities of paint and form. It is a testament to art's capacity for constant re-evaluation.