Untitled (Abstraction) 1948

Editor: This is an untitled abstract print by Frank Lobdell, created in 1948. I’m really drawn to the stark contrast between the black and white, but also the seemingly chaotic arrangement of shapes. What do you make of it? Curator: You know, the "chaos," as you put it, that’s precisely where the magic lies! It reminds me of jazz music; seemingly random notes converging to create something profoundly moving. Do you see how the shapes, almost like Rorschach blots, invite personal interpretation? It's Lobdell grappling with form itself, breaking it down and rebuilding it in his own visual language. I like to think of it as less about chaos, more about... potential. A blueprint for a new way of seeing. Editor: That's a lovely thought. So it's not so much *about* something, but rather a suggestion of endless possibilities? It almost looks biomorphic. Curator: Exactly! And you nailed it, "biomorphic" is the word. Think about the influence of artists like Miró and Arp in that period. This piece really epitomizes that post-war artistic exploration – a dance between the known and the unknown. It asks *us* to complete the picture, in a way. What do *you* see when you gaze at it? No wrong answers! Editor: That is something, well for me I can see something akin to cave paintings and that does fit with it's temporal locality Curator: Absolutely! It evokes a primordial sense, doesn’t it? The subconscious surfacing and being expressed with utter freedom. To think Lobdell did this so early in his career makes one think how deeply intuitive the work is and why is has such significance to the time in which it was born, post world war angst. I find it rather inspirational. Editor: I have to agree. I initially dismissed it as just abstract shapes, but seeing it as an invitation, a possibility, it's changed my whole view. Curator: Precisely, and there’s the magic. Art inviting us to see a little bit deeper, a little bit differently. That’s what keeps me hooked!