Vajda Lajos Monster in Blue Space. 1939, Pastell, Pencil and Watercolor on Paper. 63x94,8cm 1939

Editor: Here we have Vajda Lajos' "Monster in Blue Space" from 1939, created with pastel, pencil, and watercolor on paper. Looking at it, the bizarre creature seems unsettling yet somehow graceful as it navigates its geometric world. How do you interpret this work? Curator: What immediately strikes me is the context of 1939, right on the precipice of World War II. We need to consider the rising anxieties, both personal and political, swirling around Central Europe at the time. Do you think this monster in its ‘blue space’ reflects societal unease? Editor: That’s an interesting point. I was mostly focused on the monster itself. The face looks like an icon or a distorted religious symbol, do you think it is of any specific socio-political relevance, given it was drawn on the verge of WW2? Curator: Yes, I believe so. The abstracted figure carries the weight of displaced identity and cultural fragmentation prevalent in interwar Central Europe. Its grotesque features can be read as a distortion of societal values, mirroring the anxieties of a world heading towards catastrophe. What about the blue background? What significance does it bear? Editor: I was viewing it mostly as an environment, however given what you said before I might be inclined to suggest it could perhaps mirror a wider feeling of societal "blues", or that its world is itself depressive. Curator: Precisely! Moreover, notice the stark contrast between the soft rendering of the monster and the hard edges of the geometric shapes, indicative of a culture clash. It highlights the tensions between tradition and modernity, individual and state. Does it prompt you to look at other pre-war art differently? Editor: It really does! I now view artwork in the pre-war context more than simply surface value. This piece is disturbing, and the war period explains so much more. Curator: Absolutely. And, I now recognize the subtle cultural anxiety woven into even abstract artwork.