Posing with Panther 1983

Patrick Nagel's "Posing with Panther" gives us an idea of artmaking as a process. He's using simple mark-making and a limited palette to evoke a certain mood. It feels very 80s to me. The color palette is so striking, a blend of cool grays and purples with stark black and white. The texture is incredibly smooth, almost like it's been airbrushed or printed, and there's this flatness that pushes the image towards graphic design. I love how the artist uses line to define the forms, especially in the panther's body, giving it a sleek, almost stylized look. There's a real tension between the realistic rendering of the figures and the abstract, geometric background. This piece reminds me a little of Alex Katz with its emphasis on simplified forms and bold color choices, but Nagel brings his own unique sensibility to the table. In art, there's no such thing as a definitive answer, only a constant conversation.