Somewhereamarbleman 1990

Curator: Standing here before Stanley Boxer's "Somewhereamarbleman" from 1990, a mixed media painting. Quite a title, isn't it? Editor: It’s…chaotic, vibrant. A riot of color wrestling for dominance. The texture practically vibrates off the canvas. What a clash! Curator: Clash is a good word. Boxer, part of the Abstract Expressionist movement, loved pushing boundaries with materials. Notice the heavy impasto on the left—almost sculptural. Editor: It's more than just impasto; it's granular, textured almost like asphalt or some other heavily industrialized composite. It looks less painted and more constructed, like a relief. It reminds me of how materiality factors into both beauty and urban decay. Curator: That granular texture contrasts so beautifully with the smooth, almost glazed surface on the right, that vibrant orange fading into acidic green... it's almost unsettling. It speaks of the ephemeral, don't you think? The "somewhere" suggesting a place always just out of reach? Editor: That smooth side almost feels mass-produced, compared to the almost geologic, haphazard textures on the left side, really making me wonder what's implied in such stark opposition in both style and color. It reminds me of how landscapes change as industry impacts areas—the wild slowly fading. Curator: That might be, yes. There's definitely a tension there, a dialogue between control and chaos. But I always see a hidden luminosity in Boxer’s work. Like he’s trying to capture not just the visible world, but the very sensation of seeing, the light itself becoming the subject. Editor: Well, the layering speaks to the intense processes involved—I can see how that might lead you to associate a sort of pure sensory information. I like seeing all this so obviously laid out in front of us, though; all the work and tension plain for us to ponder over. Curator: I think it captures something fundamental about our internal experience, this push and pull between order and disorder, light and shadow. Editor: Yes, it certainly gives you pause and really demands some introspection. All right, I think I can feel it. Curator: It’s an artwork that stays with you long after you’ve left the gallery.