Leda and the Swan 1963

Cy Twombly made this painting, Leda and the Swan, in 1962, and you can see it's made with paint and crayon. It’s a jumble of marks, really, loops and scribbles of grey and black, with a big form made of red, that’s also kind of scribbly. Red drips are heading downwards. I like to imagine Twombly making this. I can see him, standing there, maybe thinking about that old story, Leda and the Swan, and then just going for it, right? A big red mark, and then another, and then all those lines, like energy, or confusion. It’s kind of a mess, but it’s a beautiful mess, you know? The red is thick in places, almost like blood, and the crayon lines are scratchy, like he was angry or something. But maybe he was also just trying to figure something out, trying to make sense of this old story in his own way. Twombly’s paintings are always like this, full of feeling, full of movement, and I think that’s what makes them so great. He wasn’t afraid to be messy, to be uncertain, and that’s something I really admire.