Cosmic Zen 2010

Curator: The artwork before us is called "Cosmic Zen", crafted by Jack Armstrong in 2010 using oil paint. Its home is a Private Collection. What springs to mind when you view this piece? Editor: Immediately, a sense of layered chaos. The density of the oil paint creates a tactile surface, almost sculptural. There's a struggle here, a visible history of the artist's process, adding and subtracting. It feels… restless. Curator: I can see that. The intense reds certainly evoke a visceral response, don’t they? To me, the lines recall ancient glyphs, almost a lost language trying to surface. Considering the title, "Cosmic Zen", do you feel there is a balance of opposites present, of grounded symbolism reaching for some cosmic meaning? Editor: That's fascinating, I hadn't considered a possible linguistic link! But now that you mention it, these are very evocative shapes that could relate to calligraphic gestures in Asian art, implying a tension between intention and pure chance during the process. How much control did Armstrong have over the final image, considering that rich, textured application of the oil? Curator: Armstrong seems interested in playing with matter; consider that heavy impasto creating peaks and troughs. Does it reveal more of a materiality that challenges the conventional separation between art and craft? Editor: Absolutely. The way the paint itself becomes the subject is very compelling. But there’s also something primordial about the imagery. Circular motifs – common in various cultures throughout time – often signify totality or wholeness. Does it feel to you like they represent the infinite and our cyclical connection to it? Curator: It is quite convincing to relate it to archetypal symbolism of primordiality. The artist perhaps employed color and gesture as vessels carrying those universal messages. And consider the social context. Editor: Right. We are so surrounded by instant images that we now search for authentic tactile expressions, making abstract-expressionism popular again as we move away from the virtual world and seek the touch and the craft involved. Curator: It certainly gives a glimpse into that creative exploration, where matter and concept intertwined. Thank you, those insights are truly appreciated. Editor: Thank you. Thinking about its tactile qualities helps decode "Cosmic Zen," offering a very compelling synthesis of material reality and ethereal meaning.