Aran 2005

Sean Scully made this photograph, Aran, with silver-dye bleach, capturing a wall of stones. It’s like, when does a wall become art? The monochrome tones are layered to give us a sense of depth, like gazing into a rock pool. You can almost feel the rough edges of each stone, each one a slightly different shape and size. Look at how Scully stacks these elements, creating a tight composition. I love how he’s found rhythm in the seemingly random arrangement. Each stone seems carefully placed, a testament to the labour, and the land. It echoes the way that he builds up layers of paint in his abstract works. It reminds me of Agnes Martin who also found the sublime in the grid. Scully's work invites us to slow down, to find the beauty in simplicity and the profound in the everyday. It’s a reminder that art is all around us, if only we take the time to see it.