Green Form 1959

Ellsworth Kelly made this painting, Green Form, on a newspaper page, and the date looks like March 20th. It’s mostly just a big splodge of bright green paint, but it’s kind of perfect, right? I love how you can still see the old newspaper print underneath, with its random words and pictures, and then BAM, this super solid, juicy green form slapped right on top. It’s thick in some parts, thin in others, almost like he used a big squeegee, or maybe just a really loaded brush. You can see the streaks and the way the paint sort of drags. It reminds me of Richard Tuttle, how he takes simple shapes and colors and makes them feel so monumental, but also super casual, like it just happened that way. Kelly’s known for his abstract shapes and his interest in flatness, and this piece is a great example of how he could find something special in the everyday, and make it sing.