Canto II 1964

Barnett Newman made this print, "Canto II," sometime in the mid-20th century, using stark blocks of color. Imagine Newman in the studio, pushing ink across the surface. What a bold move to divide the space like this! There’s this big, dark rectangle, almost swallowing the whole picture plane. And then, right down the middle, a stripe of pale blue. It’s not perfect, you know? It wobbles a little, like a hesitant breath. I love that. It reminds me of Agnes Martin's lines. You wonder, what was Newman thinking? Was he trying to create some kind of visual tension, or maybe a moment of quiet contemplation? That simple gesture, that blue line, it speaks volumes. It feels like he's inviting us to bring our own feelings and ideas to the table, and maybe that’s the point.