Untitled (L.213; SF.240) 1976

Curator: This monochrome drawing, simply titled "Untitled," was created by Sam Francis in 1976. What strikes you about it? Editor: The dynamism. It feels less like a drawing, more like capturing a fleeting moment. Like looking at something disintegrating, perhaps a comet's tail or a crashing wave. It feels fragile, held together only by the strength of the ink. Curator: Francis often embraced chance and spontaneity. We can clearly see here his engagement with action painting or, in Europe, art informel. Note the relationship between control and lack thereof when applying the ink. It's more than just line. It has body. Editor: Absolutely, you can practically see the artist's gestures, how he manipulated the materials. I mean, think about the kind of ink he used, its viscosity, and the tools, what determined the character of these splatters, blots and drips? There’s an interesting play here between high art – drawing – and craft or the industrial with the ink itself. Curator: His abstractions sought to express inner states. His process mirrored the creative chaos, allowing emotion to flow. He stated that his paintings represented the “self alive.” Do you find any connection between that assertion and your description? Editor: Definitely. Thinking about “self alive”, it makes me think of decay, but also rebirth, the way old stories can be interpreted anew in an ongoing act of material creation. So, in this dance, this back and forth with control and letting go, do you find Francis successful in translating those emotions for the viewer? Curator: For me, he has. I think the energy captured by that black ink and negative space gives this image the unique character of something like "an X-ray of an emotion", of his self in the creative process. It seems like a beautiful metaphor. Editor: I agree! In reflecting about materiality of this monochrome piece, the dynamic energy of black ink, and how artists channel labor and experience into form. There’s an immediacy in Francis's gesture.