Untitled 1995

This untitled painting was made by Zdzislaw Beksinski, we don't know exactly when, using oil on canvas. The subtle shifts in the colour palette, from deep umber to pale sand, give the impression of a half-formed, still gestating, idea. I'm drawn to the physicality of the medium here. It's not clear what tools Beksinski used, but the texture is so present, almost like looking at sedimentary rock. I keep coming back to the point where the upright of the cross meets the horizontal. The layers of paint, built up like strata, give a sense of something ancient and unknowable, as if this cross has been here forever. Beksinski's approach reminds me of Anselm Kiefer, both artists working with the abject and discarded. In both practices, the ambiguity allows for multiple interpretations. It's a space to ponder the big questions without the pressure of fixed answers.