Abraham Rattner
In one of the paintings of Abraham Rattner entitled “Crucifixion in Yellow”, he used the style of figurative expressionism by combining the traditional themes and incorporating the recognized components of Modernism. The subject of this painting of Rattner became his reaction to the memorable events that took place during the World War II. He used the idea of crucifixion to symbolize the condition of humanity during such time. As part of his personal assessment, he considered himself to be included in this spiritual journey by picturing that he is on the cross to despise the inhumanity done to the human race. This particular work of Rattner breaks and reconstructs the image of the figure that is found on the golden cross, where multitude of colorful facets can be seen which are resonant to stained glass windows. Rattner used thick paints in different colors to cover the background, and made outlines using black streaks. The inspiration of Rattner to create this piece of art can be associated to his brief stay in a residence located in Chartres, where the legendary French cathedral is situated (Henkes 85).
The Crucifixion from the Portfolio of Abraham Rattner in 1953 has shown the images of Abstract Expressionism, Surrealism, abstract and Cubistic art but is able to sustain the fundamentals of the intuitive process (Henkes 85). In his work, the audience will discover interrelated styles that results to an overall image of Abstract Expressionism. He incorporated numerous gestures and symbols exuding familiarity, by incorporating strokes of black lines to emphasize on the contours and shapes of the objects. Some of the uneven lines are used to fill in the inner stuffing of flesh (Henkes 85). Looking at Rattner’s paintings reminds the audience about a picture of a puzzle to will result to a recognizable image. It bears stressing that he is able to incorporate the intuitive process that is regularly played and the application of musical rhythm. He believed that the canvas must be completely utilized in order to show the overall expression of his idea. It is apparent that most of his artworks consume every space of his whole painting. Despite the various colors and forms in his paintings, the images are well-blended to symbolize a single expression. The finished paintings of Rattner represent one whole picture with different objects, yet it is able to secure the element of unity. The consistent overlapping and interpenetration all the images had successfully achieved “oneness” in his paintings. Although Rattner used Abstract Expressionism as his style, he is able to create a beautiful masterpiece with a clear objective. The style of Abstract Expressionism is an intuitive process which has commonly set an undefined goal (Henkes 85). In the case of Rattner, the creation process is brought to a full stop after he sensed that the painting is finally completed. It can be said that this process is the moment that his audience look forward to because the ending of his painting shall be determined by the brush of his final stroke. The initial painting that used to represent a piece of a puzzle has become a unified expression of Rattner’s idea. His style in painting brings pleasure to his audience because they see familiar symbols and gestures as they later on discover the meaning and purpose of the final work of art.
Bibliography
Henkes, Robert. The Crucifixion in American Art. North Carolina: McFarland and Company,
Inc., 2003. Print.
