Trachelium Caeruleum 1972

Lourdes Castro made "Trachelium Caeruleum" using, what looks like, watercolor or some similar transparent medium to build a translucent image that feels both present and fleeting. I love how the blue pigment pools and spreads, creating these leaf-like shapes that seem to emerge from a dream. Look at the way the color is applied so thinly in some areas, almost like a stain, and then how it deepens into these intense, saturated blues in others. You can practically feel the water moving on the paper, carrying the pigment along with it. It's so evocative. The yellow border creates a sense of a hazy, golden light that seems to dissolve the edges of the forms, making the whole image feel soft and permeable. It reminds me of some of Helen Frankenthaler's stain paintings, where the color becomes one with the canvas. But here, Castro’s delicate touch evokes a sense of fragility, like capturing a memory of a flower on a warm summer day.