Jaune radieux 1992

Eugene Brands made Jaune radieux with paint on canvas, but when? Who knows? The surface reads like a field of snowy white, and out of it, these shapes have emerged, almost like memories. I imagine Brands approaching the canvas, maybe with a brush loaded with that sunny yellow. He's feeling his way, right? Laying down a patch of joy. Then, a darker mood hits. A smudge of charcoal grey, almost angry, but then softened. It's the push and pull of making, where each move changes everything. I see a painter unafraid to let the painting breathe. There's so much space. So much room for the eye to wander. The brushstrokes, they're like whispers, telling a story of intuition and feeling. It makes me think about Agnes Martin. She also wanted to distill painting down to its essence, but she never gave up on form completely. Like many other artists, Brands builds on the work of those who came before him. He is in conversation with them. In this dialogue, he asks: how little can we do and still make it sing? It feels honest, like Brands wasn't trying to impress anyone, just exploring what paint can do.