Composition 417 (Vert et Jaune) 1959

Curator: Let's explore "Composition 417 (Vert et Jaune)" from 1959, painted by Roger Bissière. Editor: Okay, this is definitely abstract. It feels... chaotic at first glance, like a cityscape viewed through a rain-streaked window. So, where do you even begin with a piece like this? What's your take? Curator: It’s interesting you say chaotic because I feel it too but there's an undercurrent of real precision in Bissière’s brushwork, as if the chaos has very thoughtfully composed parameters. You can almost smell the oil paint mingling with… maybe linen? Because he liked working on linen. Don’t you get that tactile quality too? Think of someone arranging vibrant little stones into a mosaic… but each one’s a bit wobbly. He gives each little geometric section, whether yellow, blue, red or even a bit of that earthy brown, room to *breathe*. Editor: Mosaic is a great comparison. I definitely see how the individual colors play off each other, like they’re having a conversation. It isn’t just haphazard splattering. But, why *this* kind of abstraction? What's the motivation here? Curator: Well, the late 50s were… a time, right? The world felt like it was holding its breath. For Bissière, I imagine this was a method of building an internal world that offers him an anchor point in times of uncertainty and distress. He seems to be offering himself— and in turn, us — something intimate and almost spiritual. Editor: So, a little pocket of serenity amidst the uncertainty? Curator: Precisely! See, you are thinking like a proper historian, I suspect you just explained it to me rather than the other way round. I'd be glad to escape into that cityscape. Thank you! Editor: No, thank *you*! I feel like I have a new perspective, now! I was caught up in looking for the "meaning" but Bissière seems to have wanted us to get *lost* in the feelings.