Samuel Bak

Study for a Landscape with Explanations

   
Study for a Landscape with Explanations
  • 2015
  • Oil on canvas
  • 16 18 × 12 18 inches(41 × 30 12 cm)

  • Signed lower right: BAK

  • Frequently described as “windows to the soul,” eyes have long been used by artists to convey emotions and invoke responses within their viewers. Bak’s implementation of this visual device and its symbolism is no surprise then, as the exploration of symbols is central to Bak’s work.

    "Study for A Landscape with Explanations" features three enlarged reproductions of the symbol: two are beige and appear to be carved from stone, and a third, green in color and painted on the side of a make-shift pulpit. This green eye meets the audience’s privileged gaze and subsequently, establishes a connection that rids viewers of any ability to ignore the scene before them, thus commanding us to bear witness. If the left-most eye serves to tie viewers to the scene, what is the purpose of the other two eyes? On what do their despondent gazes linger?

    Lucy McGing (Guest writer)
    BAK a Day, February 2, 2024

  • Themes:  Figure Book Generation

Literature

From Generation to Generation Lawrence L. Langer 2016 Boston, MA, p. 88, ill.

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