The stadium has figured in Marcin Dudek’s work for over 15 years, appearing in various states of abstraction from collages, to monumental sculptures, to sound installations. Here, it appears in an oil painting, marking the artist’s very recent return to the medium. Nest I is painted from an antique, black and white postcard of the Colosseum. Dudek collects these items, which he sees as portable versions of monuments that extend their power far beyond their geographical boundaries. He renders this image in his unique, detailed visual language, which has migrated here from his collages: countless dots of color move through the image, resembling a crowd seen from afar or the dappled surface of water; sanded traces cut through the panel, like bursts of energy or tangled roots. The ancient monument bursts with vibrant orange, reflected in a pool of turquoise and aqua, tinged with grass-green growth.

The original postcard is fixed to the back of the panel, like a relic charging the piece with its breath of life.