Hommage à Martin Luther King 1968

Alfred Manessier's "Hommage à Martin Luther King" is an emotional piece painted with dark blues and reds, like flames in the night. Can you imagine Manessier, brush in hand, wrestling with feelings of loss and injustice? The marks are so gestural, like cries etched onto the canvas. The paint seems thin in places, allowing the raw surface to peek through, heightening the tension. It's interesting how the blues, normally cool and calming, here feel agitated, almost violent. Manessier’s dark palette and expressive brushwork are reminiscent of other artists grappling with similar themes. For me, this painting is a reminder that artists are constantly in conversation, responding to the world and to each other. It’s a raw, embodied expression, resisting easy answers and inviting us to contemplate the complexities of memory, meaning, and justice.