In terms of Western abstraction, Hirtl's work is groundbreaking insofar as the traditional boundaries of the sublime (with all its power claims) are transgressed by Hirtl's strategic use of material and concepts. Her gesture-free abstraction, established by means of lines, defines itself through the sheer materiality of the paint, her specific use of pigments and signs, and the multiple levels of the pictorial layers. The particular approach is mainly achieved by the minimalist method of reiteration, a meticulous process of exploring a variety of image "solutions" and new definitions that would add to Hirtl's complex system of already existing images and signs. In this way Hirtl's work is always in motion, continually stepping on new territory.


Photo: Roslyn Kean