About

With this highly enigmatic work of Art, the perimeter of the painting can be thought of as a portal into another dimension of an alternate reality. Here we are confronted with a visual language in paint that needs to be deciphered for it’s meaning. Who are these people? Where are they? What brings them there? Do they know each other?

The well dressed and fashionable elderly woman can be seen as the main figure of the painting. She is the only person looking directly out at the viewers of the painting. Her make-up is applied with such heaviness and exaggerated color that it makes her face almost appear to be a mask. As we look more closely, we can see that despite her relatively calm body language, with legs crossed, that both of her hands are clenched into fists. The hand in her lap is tense enough, but the one resting on the concrete post of the bench is downright confrontational. It is like the fist of a vindictive Judge bringing down the gavel on a political enemy, and those red fingernails don’t make things any better. Her overall demeanor is that of a woman who is used to having her way. Someone who has achieved success in life but has arrived there through great, almost brutal adversity. And yet, she possesses an undeniable elegance. She reminds us of an eccentric Nineteenth Century Parisian aristocrat who has weekly parties at her Salon and invites every kind of artist and intellectual to come for intense conversations.

The woman with the black hair is turned toward the central woman. We can’t see her face but her posture indicates that she is leaning in with vigor, perhaps to make a point about something important. She holds a red leash that forms a beautifully twisted ‘S’ curve leading the eyes of the viewer to the adorable little dog. The dog has the squinty eyed look of contentment that dogs have when they are well cared for. Can we speculate that perhaps the Yorkshire terrier belongs to the white-haired woman? They certainly seem to make a likely pair. This would mean that the woman holding the leash is definitely connected with the older woman. Perhaps an attendant, a friend or a relative. Are we starting to put the puzzle together?

The woman to the left of the painting looks with anticipation into her bag. Is she reaching for a snack, or maybe her cell phone is ringing? She appears to be the most grounded and least surreal figure in the painting. Someone who is in essence a bridge between our world and the others in the scene. Our fellow traveler in this foreign land.

The most active character is the Musician whose action provides the name for the painting. He is leaning deep into his instrument with concentrated intensity. But for all of his efforts, the large double bass doesn’t make a sound. He is right next to the other people but they don’t hear a thing. The sound-waves of the instrument are absorbed by the metaphysical vacuum of a dreamscape. He hears is music, feels it deeply, but we don’t. The plight of the Artist who believes in himself but is not yet recognized. These figures do not exist in a dream or a nightmare, but somewhere else. An alien place that is neither here nor there, in fact perhaps nowhere outside of the Artist’s mind. But the wonderful irony is that Varriano has brought it here to share with us in our own dimension.

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