Karelia. Kurazanda 1969

Petros Malayan captured this landscape with, I think, pastels and watercolor, maybe in 1969. The marks are loose, almost like sketches, with a muted, earthy palette that gives the scene a somber, quiet feel. Looking closely, you can see how the texture of the paper comes through in the sky, creating a hazy effect. Then notice the blues in the boat – they're not just blue, but layered with greys and whites, giving it depth. I love the scumbled texture used for the wooden planks; you can almost feel the rough surface. See how the artist uses those dry marks to give an impression of the wood grain. This piece reminds me a bit of early Lucien Freud – that same interest in capturing a kind of everyday reality, and an interest in the conversation between representation and abstraction. Art's not about answers, right? It's about how we keep the conversation going.