Cosmos N°3 1977

Martha Boto made Cosmos N°3 with paint and a steady hand. Look at how the circles are painted, radiating out with meticulous precision, giving the whole piece a sense of vibrating energy. The texture is smooth, almost like it’s been airbrushed, but you can also see the slight variations in color, the subtle shifts in tone that tell you this was made by hand. The interplay of blues, pinks, and purples against the black backdrop creates an illusion of depth, pulling you into the piece. Notice that green orb, seemingly floating, or perhaps about to collide with the core. It's this kind of unexpected element that really activates the piece. It makes me think of Hilma af Klint’s abstract spiritual diagrams, another artist who tried to give visual form to unseen forces. Like Klint, Boto invites us to contemplate the mysteries of the cosmos.