Self Portrait with Saint George Cathedral 1933

Oleksa Novakivskyi's "Self Portrait with Saint George Cathedral" is a landscape built with rhythmic strokes of impasto paint. You can almost feel him dabbing and swirling the paint around, working fast as the light changes. I wonder if Oleksa was thinking about the relationship between himself, the cathedral, and the surrounding world. Perhaps he was contemplating the weight of history, spirituality, or the sheer beauty of the architecture against the backdrop of nature. The painting has this tension, right? Like, the loose, playful strokes versus the solidity of the cathedral itself. The painting's surface is alive with energy. Look how the yellow and orange dance across the canvas, creating a sense of warmth and vitality. There's this one gestural dab that suggests the wind rustling through the trees, conveying the feeling of the season. I see echoes of impressionism here. Think about how artists like Monet and Pissarro captured fleeting moments of light and atmosphere! Novakivskyi's painting is a unique contribution to this conversation.