Lilly Fenichel’s Conflict (1998) is a square abstract composition in oil and wax on waferboard. Built up from contrasting areas of colour, the surface is highly tactile, with the exposed texture creating patterns that resemble shards of energy or light within the composition.

The use of waferboard, an inexpensive engineered wood product with a rough, industrial surface, becomes an integral part of the painting’s visual language. Its coarse texture contrasts with the richness of the oil and wax, lending the work a raw, almost abrasive quality. This is heightened by the title Conflict, with a subtle sense of violence suggested by the fragmented, jagged forms.

Throughout Fenichel’s career, she continually tested new materials, forms, surfaces and combinations of colour, resisting fixed categorisations. Her practice is characterised by a sustained investigation into the possibilities of abstraction through form, line, colour and material.