Häuser Mit Ofen Und Schwein 1928

Otto Mueller made this artwork, Houses with Oven and Pig, with pastel crayons at some point in his life, location unknown. The way Mueller lays down these marks reminds me of my own process. It’s all about the gesture, the pressure, the layering of colours that create this dreamy space. The blues and browns create a real sense of depth, while the outlines add just a bit of structure without feeling too tight. Look at how he uses those thick, almost velvety pastel marks to depict the earthy ground, the way he lets the strokes build up to give it texture. It’s like you can feel the earth under your feet. And then those loose, scrawly marks that suggest the vegetation, they're just perfect. Mueller reminds me a little of Paula Modersohn-Becker, both capturing the simple beauty of everyday life in rural Germany. Both artists had a similar interest in capturing the unpretentious beauty of the natural world, suggesting that art is not about perfection, but about capturing a feeling, an experience.