Cercle doré 1958

Here’s Modest Cuixart’s “Cercle doré,” made with oil paint. Looking at this piece, I can really feel Cuixart’s physical engagement with the materials. The colors here are earthy, with that golden circle fighting its way out of the dark. It's all about texture. The paint is laid on thick, almost sculpted, and you can see the marks of the brush or palette knife. It reminds me of the way some artists build up layers and layers of paint, each stroke adding to the history of the surface. And that crack across the middle? It's like a geological fault line. Overall, the painting has a kind of primordial feel. It reminds me a little of Antoni Tàpies, who also explored similar ideas of texture and materiality in his work. Art isn't about answers. It's about the questions we ask.