Study for a Painting 1938

Ad Reinhardt made this Study for a Painting, a small gouache and paper collage, while working in New York City in the 1950s. This was a time when artists, writers, and musicians, many of whom were gay, were transforming the city into a new center for art, culture, and radical politics. Reinhardt’s abstract style can be viewed in relation to the politics of his day. During the Cold War, abstraction was seen by some as a politically neutral language, a form of expression that could transcend ideological divides. Reinhardt, however, was known for his leftist politics. “Art is not trade,” he wrote in 1948, “Art is not entertainment…Art is not for Art Patronage or Art Audiences.” In this study, shapes and lines appear to be in conversation with each other, hinting at both harmony and tension. The bright colors and geometric forms create an image that is playful and dynamic. Reinhardt asks us to consider the place of art within an increasingly complex society. As we look, we might ask ourselves: What is the role of abstraction when the world is on fire?