Untitled 2014

This untitled piece by Rodrigo Franzao looks like it was made with fabric, assembled maybe bit by bit, almost like a quilt. The patchwork of color creates a playful yet structured form, suggesting that artmaking is a continuous process of building and arranging. What strikes me about this work is the tension between its flatness and its three-dimensionality. The draped fabric has a sculptural quality, yet the grid-like composition references painting and its history. The way the fabric folds and hangs reminds me of brushstrokes or gestures frozen in time. Look at that vibrant orange panel hanging down on the right side, twisted and folded; it feels like a single, expressive mark blown up to the scale of sculpture. This piece reminds me a little of Sheila Hicks’ textile sculptures, but with a rawer, more improvisational feel. It’s like Franzao is having a conversation with the history of painting through the language of textiles, asking us to reconsider the boundaries between media and disciplines. It's this kind of ambiguity and open-endedness that makes art so exciting.