Rural Wedding

Like many artists of his generation, Karl Fridman travelled across his country and drew inspiration from scenes he saw in small cities and villages scattered among the tundra forests. He was drawn to ‘village prose’, intimate and lyrical scenes, spiritual reflections on human life. However, in “Village Wedding”, he chose to use surprisingly bright, clean colours, and the philosophical approach gives way to the lively rendition of vibrant village life. The figures in this piece are heavily drawn characters, the good-natured humour with which he depicts these people can be compared to Breugel in its humanity. This painting depicts scenes from daily life, the temperaments and mores drawn out for us, the viewer, by the artist. The real recognisable village characters – that you will find in any village – are not judged, rather they are presented with a warmth and intimacy that means we cannot help but like these, albeit slightly humorous, characters.