So much friction exists, for me, in the constellation of various materials comprising a painting that I consider it a step too far to employ that medium merely as a means of depicting something other than the painting itself. Although this fundamental point of departure is moreover the first pitfall to be faced at the very outset, as Malevich’s square has already existed for a hundred years and the painting’s existence as an object has long been established, it is within this idea that I find the space and the grounds to start my work. That painting is much more than a mere layer of paint on its support, that object much more than a mere volume.
My visual quest for an answer essentially focuses on the two most important moments in the process. The step from an idea to a beginning, or rather: the relevance of an idea—the reason to begin executing that idea. And: in a successful work, the ultimate shift from my wishing to pursue that idea toward an independent Being, the finished work.
As a context of interrelated tensions, a logical Being, a painting is indivisible. Like an atom, a painting is a neutral state among positively and negatively charged components. When it dissolves into factors, the nature of each charged component becomes evident. These components are in constant conflict with each other. First literally in terms of process, as cause and effect; later figuratively, as the unsteady balance of the final product. On the basis of these thoughts, I try to do away with my obstinacy and perfectionism by dissecting the accumulation of material that a painting is and testing the usefulness of each individual component, in the occasionally feigned belief that it can thereby be understood. As such I handle each material separately and thus become aware of enclosed and concealed space, which I ultimately want to render on the flat surface.
In this painting I prefer to let the entire accumulation of material be seen, be part of the image. This accumulation is the projection onto the volume, the outermost layer of that framework. That is precisely where the initial objective approach to each component, the rational logic of my various decisions, shifts toward a subjective assessment—the illusion. I want to be right but must be surprised; my painting does not paint itself but must nonetheless become better than I wanted it to be.
- Benjamin Roth
