Hunter (2017)

Gheorghe Virtosu’s work is rich in meaning, as established in “Hunter.” The background is composed of different shades of grey and veer from patterns to a visible ladder on the bottom right of the painting and metal pipes on the upper left side of the paper. This could be interpreted as the brevity of existence and the ladder, as a structure which leads to nowhere, much like Sisyphus and the rock. This interpretation is bolstered by the metallic color of the background, varying between empty spaces and ones which expose pipes connected to nothing and, therefore, are as useless as much as human life is. The brush strokes are determinedly strong, emphasizing the existentialist angst which humanity is doomed with, whether some are blinded to this feeling or see it and understand that it is the pictorial representation of their angst.

The centerpiece is an extension of the failure of human lives and its division between the hunter and the hunted. On the right edge of the painting, one can clearly see a dear but because it is surrounded by red, it is apparent that it was hunted. Above the centerpiece the figure is an apparent representation of the hunter’s hand. The palm is blue with a bold and overreading deep and strong yellow, again illustrating bold brush strokes. The four fingers are represented as is the thumb, even though all assume grotesque form. The digits are sharp and threatening, while the thumb emerges as broad and strong. To the middle of the centerpiece is a red form which assumes the shape of the heart. It is broken by a very light purple and multicolored skewers penetrate it. At the mid bottom of the centerpiece, the grey is creeping in but assumes the form of a small game, such as a rapid with two ears and a wide mouth which appears to be close to swallowing the yellow and the purple head/life forms within the reach of its mouth. Thus, the hunted becomes the hunter.