Untitled 1946

Editor: Here we have Leon Polk Smith’s "Untitled" piece, from 1946. It's a circular work with yellow and black geometric shapes. What symbols or cultural references do you see in this pattern? Curator: The L-shapes remind me of architectural blueprints or city layouts—evoking modernity, progress. Consider them as characters in a visual language: do they communicate or clash? Editor: So you're suggesting that these shapes are like letters or symbols within a larger visual system? Curator: Precisely! Smith may be hinting at something akin to a coded message, or the blueprints for an unknowable structure. The repetition embeds it in our cultural memory. Editor: That makes the painting feel more complex, like there's a hidden narrative within its simple shapes. Curator: Indeed, a dialogue between form and meaning!