The Islands 1961

This is one of Agnes Martin’s grid paintings, in which she has laid out a delicate map in soft browns and whites. I imagine her, brush in hand, patiently marking out the composition, a meditation made visible. What must it have been like, I wonder, to stand before this canvas, armed with such a clear, yet quiet vision? The thin paint creates subtle, almost imperceptible textures. The pale dots, like faint stars against a warm sky, create a feeling of spaciousness. There's a quiet hum that makes me think of other grid makers like Sol LeWitt, but where his are architectural, hers are more like a landscape. This insistence on a restricted set of moves is something many painters return to. It invites us to slow down, to look closely, and perhaps to find our own islands within it.