Untitled 2009

Olivier Mosset made this "Untitled" painting by applying a field of red paint to a circular canvas. The uniformity of colour and shape suggests a fascination with the pure, unadulterated potential of the painting process. The surface of the painting is where things get interesting. The colour is a rich, matte red, but it’s not a smooth, machine-like finish. Up close, you can see a subtle texture, a slight variation in the paint that suggests it's been applied by hand, with a brush or roller perhaps. I love how this tension between the industrial, almost readymade quality of the form and the handmade feel of the surface invites you to consider it. This work reminds me of Yves Klein and his monochrome paintings, both artists are pushing painting to its limits, exploring the bare essentials of colour, form, and surface. It's like they're asking, what is the minimum that a painting can be and still be a painting? And what can we discover when we strip everything else away?