PAINTINGS WITH RED COLOUR
The emotional source of these paintings is on a really personal level and difficult to elaborate, without being forced to unneccesary lengths of writing.
What can easily be commented, however, is perhaps on a more pragmatic level, but may nevertheless be interesting;
These paintings function, in many ways, like counter-images to my landscape-based work although
there is no definitive intent in that respect, no pre-planned combinations have ever existed ( such as the presentations appear on this web-site). In fact I am often as surprised over the resulting "third image" that appear as any two or more paintings are placed together.
I frequently cite older painting, mainly from the late rennaissance or baroque-period. Despite this dialogue of sorts with historical painters, my pretence is not to make a post-modern/neo-classical "trick", but indeed I do feel that I keep a painterly dialogue on a personal level with some old heroes
(and some non-heroes as well). I have always admired old painting and not the least the incredible abstract qualities that I like to prevail is to be found in a painting by, say, Tiziano.
I have returned to the Spanish 17th century painter Ribera several times and especially to the beautiful and grim "Apollo and Marsyas". Ribera is a favourite conversation partner in this sense.
My method here has some similarities to when affronting the landscape based work.
However - the difference in approach here is also distinct in that the red paintings are subject of
a forced, or will-driven fragmentation, whereas the landscapes or "Natura-in-transits" are conjured
in a slower, more meditative state of mind.
With my cited paintings, I intendedly study and observe the original painting, copy it in a precise but rational way, then gradually "destroy" or fragmentize it to a higher or lesser degree - and then paint it back in again, more often innumerous times.
Those of the "red paintings" that are not put together from cited old painting, come about in more or less the same type of process - starting out with a carefully drawn base and then de-construction and re-construction. In many ways this is a streneous process, but equally difficult for me to stay away from.
Karl Johan Lilliesköld
november 2002
