Art Theory Text with Table 1949

Curator: This is Stuart Davis's "Art Theory Text with Table." It's undated, but it gives us a fascinating glimpse into his artistic thought process. Editor: It looks like a page torn from a notebook, with scribbled text and a quirky, almost childlike drawing. It feels immediate, like a snapshot of a fleeting idea. Curator: Davis pairs his abstract imagery with text about art being an attitude toward subject matter to realize a personal sense of inner order. The very act of combining text and image feels symbolic of his broader artistic aims, reflecting the social construction of meaning. Editor: Absolutely. And his argument that art is non-materialistic is interesting in light of his abstract work, which often seems to be about reducing objects to their essential forms and the underlying ideas they carry. Curator: Davis suggests that rationally understanding art is frustrating. I wonder if his table becomes a visual symbol of this frustration, this attempt to contain the uncontainable. Editor: I find it liberating. It reminds me that visual languages can articulate complexities that elude words, and that abstraction provides a visual means for individual and cultural expression.