Peace Ahead 1984

Victor Puzyrkov made "Peace Ahead," with paint, sometime in the last century. The palette is muted, mostly browns and greens, like the earth itself. I’m thinking about Puzyrkov mixing those colors, getting the right muddy consistency for the road, the right golden hue for the field. Did he mix it just so, or did he let it be a little off, a little surprising? You can see the strokes, how he built up the textures, especially in the mud and the grass. I imagine him stepping back, squinting, and then lunging forward to add a highlight, a shadow, to get the feel just right. There’s something about the way the soldier stands, so solid yet so full of doubt. What’s he thinking? Is he hopeful, weary, or both? It is a question mark, really, this painting. Like the way any painter works, in that in-between space, trying to feel one’s way through, like de Kooning or something. Maybe Puzyrkov was too. And like them, he leaves the rest up to us.