The Joy of Painting what is not meant to be painted: Flags, Curtains and Window

The painting of a flag is always about a flag, but it is no more about a flag than it is about a brushstroke, or about a colour or about the physicality of paint.

Jasper Johns

Fredrik Værslev’s work, seen recently at the National Museum in Oslo, explores how painting can evoke familiar imagery—sunsets, flags, curtains, windows—without representing them directly. His polyptych Untitled (Sunset 1) suggests the experience of a sunset through horizontal lines and color transitions, rather than literal depiction.

His flag series, focused on the Portuguese flag, reflects on the tension between national symbols and painterly intervention. Initially printed via silkscreen, each flag is altered through color shifts, distortions, or graffiti-like marks, challenging the idea of patriotic unity. These interventions question the symbolic power of flags, especially relevant in times of political tension—such as Trump’s 2024 rally backdrop or the redesign controversy of Portugal’s national logo. The choice to paint only Portuguese flags in a Norwegian context adds irony. Few Norwegians recognize the symbol, while in Portugal the works may provoke nationalist interpretations or discomfort. The repetition and variation of the same image aligns with Værslev’s interest in seriality and the legacy of artists like Jasper Johns and Louise Lawler—where context and presentation shape meaning.

The Curtains series references domestic improvisation, where mismatched fabrics serve aesthetic and practical needs. These works, often marked with stains and fluorescent lines, detach curtains from utility to reclaim them as paintings. They evoke personal memory while resisting decorative function. Lastly, Windows—fabric-covered and weathered over Norwegian seasons—evoke architectural mimicry. These are not real windows, but blind, painted facades, referencing colonial and religious architecture. Their opacity recalls Douglas Gordon’s Blind Images, suggesting absence and symbolic blindness. Across Flags, Curtains, and Windows, Værslev destabilizes familiar forms through painting, inviting viewers to reflect on representation, perception, and identity. His works exist in tension between recognition and abstraction, cultural symbol and artistic gesture—joyfully undermining the very things they appear to depict.

Excerpt from the catalogue text written by Luísa Especial, April 2025.