Hero and Leandro (A Painting in Four Parts) Part III 1984

Cy Twombly made this painting, Hero and Leandro Part III, with his characteristic approach to gesture, which feels like a dance between control and chance. The painting's surface is a field of muted whites and grays, built up through layers of thin washes and scumbled marks. You can almost feel the push and pull of the brush as Twombly worked across the canvas. It’s not about hiding the process, but revealing it, making the act of painting itself the subject. Notice how, in the lower right corner, there are these vertical drips, like tears or the aftermath of a storm. It's as if Twombly is channeling something elemental. His marks are not just marks but carriers of emotion. He is in conversation with forebears like Kline, but also anticipates the later work of someone like Richter. His work reminds us that art is as much about feeling as it is about seeing.