Riverbed D 1981

Curator: This is Fred Williams's "Riverbed D," currently held in the Tate Collections. Editor: It strikes me as both stark and subtly luminous. The central vertical divide really dictates the composition. Curator: Indeed. The muted earth tones create a kind of topographical map, abstracting the Australian landscape he often depicted. We might ask what kind of role landscape painting played in the post-colonial context, especially as ideas of land ownership were being contested. Editor: The texture also draws my attention – those tiny speckles disrupt the large swaths of color, preventing the eye from resting. The fissure itself seems to simultaneously bisect and connect the two halves. Is it a river, a crack, or both? Curator: An excellent point. Williams was deeply interested in representing space, and I think the interplay of line and color here really pushes the boundaries of perspective. Editor: It certainly gives one a lot to consider. Curator: Absolutely. It's a fascinating distillation of form and space.