Milan Houser is a distinctive face of our contemporary non-brush painting with clear overlaps into conceptual positions of artistic expression. His work is imbued with experiments with various materials, synthetic varnishes and solvents, metallic and non-metallic additives or with the use of physical laws, which then often influence the final appearance of his works. In this concept, varnish is an unmistakable medium that Houser layers, mixes and allows to flow spontaneously in gradually drying layers of individual image surfaces. Characteristic monumental images are created in this way, where the interventions of the artist and the action of natural phenomena act in an unexpected interaction with each other.
The paint has a low surface tension and everything that falls on its not-yet-hardened surface immediately sinks to the bottom, drowning in it. However, i tis quickly covered by a crust from which any dust can be easily wiped away. The mixed pigments in the paint under the crust constantly travel and the painting changes its character. Particles in the individual layers „bubble“ up and down and can become visible to the eye as long as many weeks later. My work is taking place in a special time mode. A classic painter makes a brushstroke and immediately sees the result. I pour the paint, and it takes months or even years for me to find out what the painting will look like.
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I like to talk about the technology of making my paintings, about the physical and chemical processes that také place in them. I enjoy inventing methods for how to understand and use these processes to create a work of art. I am playing at being a scientist, in a way, I také advantage of errors, I let myself be surprised. However, I find it more difficult to speak about the meanings of these works. Rather, I am interested in listening to what others think about the resulting paintings, what they are able to see in them.
(From Tomáš Pospiszyl's interview with Milan Houser, Gravitational Painting MH 2020)
