Winter 1944

Ivan Generalic made this 'Winter' painting using oil on glass, and there's something beautifully backwards about that process. Like, here’s a scene of rural life, rendered with this super smooth, almost naive touch. The colours are muted, mostly browns, whites, and greys. The paint sits so evenly, you almost don’t see the hand of the artist. And yet, look closer. See how the snow on the roofs isn't just white, but layered, with subtle blues and greys mixed in? That’s where the painting comes alive. It's like Generalic is reminding us that even the most familiar scenes are made up of a million tiny, complex moments. I think about Pieter Bruegel the Elder, another master of the everyday. Like Breugel, Generalic helps us understand art as an ongoing conversation, embracing the beauty and ambiguity of the world.