At the confluence of the Kupa and Korana 2021

Alfred Freddy Krupa made this painting, "At the confluence of the Kupa and Korana," with paint, probably quickly, intuitively. It’s an image that almost dissolves into abstraction. I can feel the artist moving things around, pushing and pulling. There’s this light blue ground, like a sky, maybe water, and on top of it the artist has loaded these dark brown tree trunks that feel almost calligraphic, like big sweeping gestures. The paint is thick, you can see the brushstrokes, you can sense the hand moving across the surface. The white marks look like erasures, or maybe the painting underneath showing through. I love that Krupa doesn't hide the process. It reminds me of Joan Mitchell, who also painted with this kind of ferocity and honesty, laying bare the struggle and the joy of artmaking. Art isn’t about fixed meanings, it’s about opening up possibilities.