Haeres 1977

Genevieve Asse made “Haeres” with paint, and with what looks like an incredible amount of space. It’s so simple, almost severe, in its geometry and palette, yet there’s a sensitivity to the gradations of colour that I find really compelling. There’s a vertical line that divides the trapezoid right down the middle, and if you look closely, you can see where the blue has faded, softened, almost like breath on a mirror. The colour at the bottom is dense and solid, and as your eye travels upwards, it dissolves into the white ground. What could be read as a monumental form becomes quite fragile. It reminds me a little of Agnes Martin, in the sense that Asse seems to find the sublime in the subtle, but it also makes me think of the quiet, pared-down still lifes of Giorgio Morandi. Ultimately, it’s a reminder that art doesn’t have to shout to be heard; sometimes, the most powerful statements are whispered.