Growth 1968

Rita Angus made this magical painting called Growth sometime in the twentieth century. Look at those solid, geometric forms and the way she’s orchestrated them on that blue ground. I can just imagine her, squinting, stepping back, maybe mumbling to herself, trying out slightly different shapes. I wonder if she was thinking about Mondrian, how she could play with her own kind of flatness, stillness, and those crisp edges. It feels so controlled but, at the same time, playful. I like the unexpected colour combinations and the textures that make the paint feel smooth and chalky. Check out that little red triangle on the bottom row – it feels so full of quiet energy. It makes me think about what it means to grow, what is burgeoning below the surface of these plants? Painting can do that, make you think, wonder, and see things in a new way. And that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?