Khrog 1974

James Brooks made this work, Khrog, with a dynamic use of black, white, and blue paint, creating an intriguing interplay of form and void. Brooks builds the composition with broad strokes, moving from the solid blue and black shapes in the lower left, up into a ghostly white, before resolving in the skeletal black lines at the upper right. You can almost see the ghost of a body in those lines, it really does evoke movement. The texture is palpable, with visible brushstrokes suggesting a layering process – like a conversation he’s having with the canvas. There’s something incredibly satisfying about how the white area bleeds into the black, a blur of tones suggesting something solid being dissolved in air. There's an echo here of Franz Kline's calligraphic gestures, but with a softer, more spectral quality. And for me, Khrog is like a reminder that a painting doesn't have to shout to be heard; sometimes, the quietest voices leave the deepest impression.