Ohne Titel (für Peter Dibke) 1970

Blinky Palermo made this painting, *Ohne Titel (für Peter Dibke)*, as an offering to his friend, but the lack of a title seems like an invitation for us to join the conversation. Look at how he layers color, raw sienna and blue, on this oval surface, building a texture that’s almost crusty. It looks like it's been scrubbed onto the surface. The orange feels like it’s struggling to escape, those blues seem to hold it down, giving the piece an overall sense of tension. Notice the way the edges are more defined than the center? It's like the painting is breathing, expanding from the middle, but being contained by the outer limits. I’m reminded of Gerhard Richter's color charts, how he also explored the emotional potential of color. Like Richter, Palermo uses a simple structure as a starting point, embracing the process of painting as a way to discover, rather than dictate, meaning. It’s a good reminder that art is a conversation, an ongoing exchange of ideas, and often, a beautiful mess.