Clock 1914

Lyubov Popova made this painting, called Clock, which is in a private collection, using oils on canvas. I imagine Popova building this painting up, kind of like collage, except with oil paint. There are all these greys, beiges and blacks, layered on top of each other. The paint looks thin. I can see the weave of the canvas. Popova must have been thinking about machinery, time, and also ornamentation. I love the way she combines the mechanical gears with the decorative border in the top left. It’s like she is asking what it means to be modern. Popova was part of the Russian avant-garde, and was thinking about how to make a new kind of painting for a new world. I see echoes of Picasso and Braque, but also something totally unique. Painters are always in conversation, aren’t they? Popova is no exception, riffing off her peers, while pushing painting in her own direction.