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Tóth Ágnes — Works previously shown at the gallery

Tóth Ágnes szürke hátterű gouache festménye két feketébe öltözött férfiról, akik három nagy fehér halat tartanak

TÓTH Ágnes: Két férfi három hallal

Gouache on paper, 24 × 30 cm. This painting brings a trophy photograph, a portrait of working men and an unspoken competition into the studio together. Two men in black stand side by side holding enormous fish. Their matter-of-fact seriousness is almost funny. They simply stand there with their catch, giving everyday pride a strangely ceremonial form. The composition is pared down intelligently. A neutral grey background strips the space bare, directing attention to the figures and the fish. White scales, pink gill marks and silvery reflections shine against the dark clothing. Contrast drives the scene: dark human forms, pale catch, spare background. The differences between the men are especially telling. The figure on the left is more withdrawn and shadowed, almost distrustful. The figure on the right is more open, direct and confident. This creates a relationship between two versions of masculine self-image. The fish are trophies, comic props and substantial physical bodies at once, so large and prominent that they almost take over. The picture also asks how identity gathers around possession, the catch and its display. Its raw surfaces, broadly characterised faces and nearly column-like black bodies give it a concentrated, almost iconic force. Two men, three fish, a grey void — and an entire social scene. Perhaps its best quality is that it both respects and gently laughs at the situation. The pride in the catch remains palpable, while the proportions, ceremonial seriousness and bare background make it almost surreal: an altarpiece to everyday triumph with a very dry sense of humour.

Méret: 24×30 cm

Értékbecslést kérek erről a munkáról