Mexico MELAQUE 1983

Sean Scully made this watercolor, Mexico MELAQUE, on paper back in 1983. I like how the stripes of color and the materiality of the paint create a certain mood in the painting. The work features horizontal and vertical bands in yellow, red, green, and blue. The washes are thin and transparent, which creates a sense of depth and luminosity, you know? I can almost imagine Scully standing there, brush in hand, letting the colors bleed and blend. He's finding a rhythm, a structure, but also letting the paint do its thing. Scully has explored similar themes of color and form throughout his career, echoing the legacy of artists like Agnes Martin, with their own minimalist and meditative grids. It's as though these artists are in conversation across time, each finding their own way to express something fundamental about seeing and feeling.