They Were and Went 15:13 2001

This drawing, 'They Were and Went 15:13' is by William Anastasi. It's marks on paper, and it feels like a record of an action, or maybe a residue of thought. There's an evenness to the distribution of marks that makes me think of chance operations, or maybe some kind of system. It’s funny, because at first it looks like a cloud of nothing, but then you notice the way the marks concentrate, like a little storm gathering energy. Each mark on its own is insignificant, but together, they build to something else, something that pulses with a quiet energy. It brings to mind the work of someone like Agnes Martin, who also used repetition and subtle variation to create these fields of quiet intensity. I think ultimately, art is an ongoing conversation, a constant process of call and response across time and space. These artists show how much can be said with the quietest of voices.