Untitled 2010

Joachim Bandau made this untitled artwork using pencil and graphite to create a fan of stacked squares. I can imagine Bandau, carefully layering each square, each one fainter than the last. The bottom squares look like they are about to lift off the page with the paler squares leading the way. I remember when I realized how the accumulation of tiny, repetitive marks can amount to a moving image. This piece reminds me of the dynamism and structural simplicity in the work of Sol LeWitt. Bandau’s fan of squares creates a beautiful illusion of motion. What I love about painting, what I think all artists understand, is how we are in a continuous dialogue with the past, present, and future, constantly inspiring each other and exploring the endless possibilities of expression. This artwork, with its minimalist beauty, invites us to see the world with new eyes. It is an amazing feeling when you can see how artists are able to embrace ambiguity and uncertainty, allowing for multiple interpretations and meaning over fixed or definitive readings.