Codomas 1943

This artwork, Codomas, seems to be made from cut pieces of paper by Henri Matisse. I imagine Matisse snipping away at these shapes. The image is organized with blocks of flat color – bright greens, yellows and oranges–and a combination of geometric and organic forms floating on top. I’m thinking about Matisse making this. I bet he had piles of colored paper strewn about his studio, maybe pinned to the wall. Look at the way he plays with positive and negative space, scattering those black squares over the yellow. It’s like he’s trying to find a way to create depth with just color and shape. That snaking yellow form on the green reminds me of a similar shape I use sometimes in my paintings. Maybe he’s speaking to me across time, saying, “Hey Amy, try this!” That's how it goes –artists riffing off each other, borrowing, stealing, transforming ideas across generations. It's this ongoing, messy conversation that keeps art alive.