JOSEPH HIRSCH 1910-1981

Invocation, 1966-69

Oil on canvas, 90 X 62" (228.60 x 157.48 cm.)

Joseph Hirsch's evolution as an artist was affected by significant developments in early twentieth century American art. Before his birth, a small band of painters calling themselves The Eight championed the ordinary individual and everyday activity as subjects for art. Their influence extended into the 1920s and 1930s, when American Scene Painting challenged the pre-eminence of abstraction. During the Great Depression, American Scene artists continued to depict common people and events in New York City, finding their subjects on the streets of Greenwich Village and at the amusement park at Coney Island. A distinguishing aspect of this American Scene Movement was its rejection of International Modernism in favor of social consciousness as a central impetus.'
Early in his career, Hirsch studied with one of The Eight, George Luks. Under his tutelage, Hirsch received an introduction to painting derived from daily observation and experience. Subsequently, he suffered the rigors of economic hardship personally. Living in a Northeast urban environment hit hard by the contraction of business and economic growth, Hirsch was made aware of the sharpened differences between rich and poor people. Given both his artistic and personal backgrounds, it is not surprising that he turned to social commentary as a primary topic of interest.
Invocation was completed in the late 1960s, a period of political upheaval and civil disturbance. Although at this time most artists were primarily concerned with abstract and conceptual issues, Hirsch continued to pursue his brand of visual editorialism. And if his style was not an courant, his concern for social issues decidedly was.
Typical of Hirsch's oeuvre, Invocation is arranged along frontally layered planes. Two foreground figures positioned along the side of a speaker's platform seem to occupy the viewer's space. Behind them is a focal group of black robed figures standing before flags and a background wall. At the top of the painting, a canopy re-establishes the picture's actual surface. Through these formal devices, the painting seems to oscillate between outer peripheral and inner, illusionistic space. Here also, Hirsch has displayed his characteristic predilection for frontal orientation, establishment of planar spatial zones, and placement of an introductory area relating the viewer to the primary subject of the painting.
Also typical of Hirsch is his portrayal of people dressed for their Iife's role. In his depictions, business, military, or academic regalia cover, but do not hide, the wearer's subjugation to time and circumstance. The careful description of the faces reveals the inevitable decay of flesh and the distortion of features dependent upon each particular personality. In Hirsch's interpretation, a sense of gravity, even pompousness, has molded his subjects' outer demeanors, as it has governed their existence.
In response to a direct query about the painting, Hirsch wrote that it, followed the college's commencement ritual, which I witnessed when the oldest of my three sons graduated." A ceremonial occasion such as this one suited the artist's predilection for revealing the insubstantial and fragile human condition behind pomp and circumstance.
There is a photographic sense of stopped motion, capturing a momentary and vulnerable state of humanity.
For Hirsch, the gestures and placement of human subjects served as a guide for the viewer's response. Though a certain event might inspire him, he left its meaning open to various interpretations. Thus, to Hirsch, Realism was intended to stimulate varying reactions, depending on the viewer's own experience. Invocation exemplifies his interest in painting thought-provoking human actions and events.

JUDY COLLISCHAN