Weaving Sample c. 20th century

Editor: This is Otti Berger's "Weaving Sample," currently held at the Harvard Art Museums. The grid of colors and textures is visually striking. What are your thoughts on the formal elements at play here? Curator: The interplay of color and texture is indeed paramount. Notice how Berger employs contrasting hues and values to create a dynamic visual rhythm. The structure of the grid itself—how the horizontal and vertical threads intersect—dictates the entire composition. It becomes a study of the woven medium. Editor: So, you're saying the structure is the message? Curator: Precisely. The inherent properties of weaving—the warp and weft, the interplay of tension and release—become the very subject of the work. The artist's manipulation of these elements reveals a profound understanding of the medium's potential. Editor: Fascinating. I’ll never look at a textile the same way again. Curator: The power of form, indeed, reshapes our vision.