Tous les 5 cm, tous les 6 cm, No. 74075 1974

Francois Morellet made this artwork, ‘Tous les 5 cm, tous les 6 cm, No. 74075,’ a canvas meticulously adorned with a grid of small, dark dashes. At first glance, the dashes might appear as simple marks, yet they evoke something deeper. Consider the grid, an ancient symbol of order and control, as seen in the plans of Roman cities, dividing space and defining boundaries. Yet, here, the grid is destabilized by the subtle variations in the intervals between the marks. The dashes form a pattern but also resist it, creating a tension that engages our perception. Think of ornamental patterns in Islamic art, where repetition leads to contemplation and understanding of the infinite. This tension is what makes it so engaging. It speaks to our desire for order while also acknowledging the inherent chaos of existence. Like a dream half-remembered, the painting lingers in the mind, a testament to the power of simple forms to evoke complex emotions. The grid’s imperfect rendition and the recurring dash pattern point to the non-linear progression of symbols, continually resurfacing and evolving.