Pale Yellow, Pink and Brown 1971

John Hoyland made this painting, Pale Yellow, Pink and Brown, with paint and probably some printmaking techniques. The colors are so yummy, right? It’s all about process, about how one color meets another and makes something new happen. Look at the surface: it’s smooth, like the paint was soaked right into the canvas. It is neither fully painting or printmaking. He's not trying to hide the way the paint moves, how it splatters, or where it stops. He is letting it live! There’s a soft pink rectangle floating in the middle, like a hazy dream. The pinks are echoed in the splatters, which also suggest movement and are a direct result of the artist's hand. I’m reminded of Helen Frankenthaler’s soak-stain paintings and how she also let the paint do its thing. Hoyland and Frankenthaler, they're both part of a conversation about what paint can do, without getting all hung up on what it's supposed to represent.