Crystal ring 1976

Kazuo Shiraga made this piece, Crystal Ring, with oil paint, though I don't know when. What strikes me is the way he has approached the surface, not as something to be carefully covered, but as a site for action. The canvas has a raw, almost unprimed feel, which sets off the swirling vortex of blues and whites. You can almost feel the physical energy Shiraga exerted, pushing the paint around, creating these circular rhythms. Look closely at that central whirl, how the colors bleed into each other, the blues deepening and lightening in the spin. This to me isn't just representation, it's a record of a physical process. This piece really reminds me of some of the work of Yves Klein, in its interest in gesture and the sublime power of color. Shiraga's work, however, is rougher, more embodied. It's like a dance, a physical conversation between the artist and his materials. And isn’t that what painting is all about?