Proteus 1984

Cy Twombly made 'Proteus', sometime around 1984, with paint on paper. It looks like he went at it in a frenzy of color and gesture! Up close, you can see how the paint is layered, almost like he's building up the image from a collection of fleeting marks. It's not about perfection but about capturing a feeling, an idea, or a memory. See how the reds and pinks kind of explode across the surface, with little drips and splatters adding to the energy? Then there’s this single, long green line, like a stem, grounding all that chaos. Twombly’s marks are so intuitive, so free. He reminds me a bit of Joan Mitchell, in that both are interested in the raw energy of a line or color. For Twombly, art isn't about answers, it's about the questions, the possibilities, the beauty in the unfinished.