This original artwork "Project №1" was created by the contemporary Russian artist Alexey Gaufler and is available for sale online.
"Project #1" is an immersion into the essence of matter. The painting is based on the desire to understand how layers of paint can preserve traces of the past. The work was created in the form of a conversation with the canvas: multiple applications with a homemade elastic spatula revealed fragments of hidden layers to the viewer. The key point here is not the perfect evenness, but the resistance of the material. Pressing in a new color, the elastic plane of the tool meets the rebelliousness of the paint: it reluctantly fills the depressions, clinging to the protrusions, creating "bald spots" - portals to the past. Inspired by an interview with Gerhard Richter, I became fascinated by the behavior of acrylic pigment under pressure. Having adapted this method, I brought in a personal feature: I used acrylic varnish between the layers, fixing the layers and creating "mirrors" reflecting the depth. Under the final layer are hidden three completed works, each of which could have existed separately, but they dissolved in a new concept. This process resembled both archaeological excavations and geological research: I explored layers where chance intertwines with control. Each unpainted area is a breakthrough of memory into the present. Forgotten shades flicker in them, contrasts hidden under new layers appear. Geometric brushstrokes left by the wide plane of the scraper collide with a diagonal vortex that tears the surface with a wave, giving the canvas dynamics. Color is a trace of movement. Warm ochres appear through cold gray tones, reminiscent of rock layers in geological faults: cinnabar, ultramarine, ochre. The main thing is the tension between order and chaos. Clear lines intersect with a flow living its own life, and the texture becomes a chronicle. It records the trembling of the spatula in the hand, the uneven breathing of the canvas under pressure, the transformation of acrylic into liquid marble when mixed with old pigment. These iridescent depressions are not a flaw, but traces of a struggle. They are scars where “imperfection” opens the way to depth. The painting has no “top” and “bottom” – it breathes from all sides, inviting the viewer to explore the textures and find their way through the layers. Control is impossible – one can only create conditions for the paint to reveal its tectonic nature.