Florin Kompatscher Works

This elegant, large-format catalog of the fascinating paintings of Italian-bornartist Florin Kompatscher focuses on his work from 2005-2010. In stunning colorreproductions and black-and-white installation photos, the reader can see theremarkable balance between surreal metaphor and special depth of field in his oilpaintings; Kompatscher's paintings are dream-like, referring to antecedents likeDali, Magritte, Tanguy and even Caspar David Friedrich, yet totally individual to theartist. ''It is possible to glimpse mountainous landscapes and underwater worlds,exploding volcanoes, and cosmic configurations in these paintings,'' writes arthistorian Noemi Smolik. ''At the same time, they elude the real.'' Hard to describe,indeed, but nonetheless beautiful.