Rule 1991

Robert Ryman made 'Rule' with paint, and right away you notice how the marks build up. It's like watching someone think through the act of painting. The painting has a definite skin to it, so close in color, but with a whole geography of bumps and dips. Each gesture sits on the surface, catching the light and casting shadows, which gives the whole thing a quiet kind of energy. Look how the paint is applied in these short dashes, almost like little whispers across the canvas. They aren't trying to hide anything; the process is right there for you to see. You could see connections with Agnes Martin's subtle surfaces or even some of the early minimalist sculptors who were interested in material and process. It's about seeing what paint can do, not just what it can represent. It's like he's saying, "Here's the paint, here's the surface, now let's see what happens."