John Brack is an artist with a distinct interest in life and people, and this fascination is reflected in many of his works. A number of his works contain symbols and representations of his views on life and how people live through it. Such examples of these types of works are "The Evening Dance," painting, oil on canvas (1889-90), and "The Battle," painting, oil on canvas (1981-83). They are two very different types of paintings with very strong and bold statements about people and the way they live their lives.
             "The Evening Dance" is very strong and bold, bursting with movement and hidden meanings of mixed emotions. This work is a painting of many pairs of wooden figurines dancing on a table. Each of the wooden couples is dancing in the same position, but they are painted from a different angle. I feel that this painting is about life and John Brack is proposing that life is like a dance. The wooden figurines represent people, the way that each figurine is exactly identical to another may suggest the way he views people going through life; being totally equal and no different from another. The round table that they dance upon and the repetition of the same dance position may perhaps imply the way he sees life, revolving and a constant journey only to take you to where you had begun. The manner in which each figurine is positioned in the same pose, yet seen from various perspectives may also suggest the way he feels about the people and their lives, different people living through the same experiences, but thinking, feeling, and acting about the experience from a different perspective. There are closing curtains behind the table of dancing figurines and the title, The Evening Dance may propose the idea that it's coming to the close of life or the end of a particular experience in many lives.
             "The Battle" is also a piece with a strong, definite statement comprising of strong lines and bold colors. Although this is also about life...