Untitled (Composition) 1957

Robert Goodnough made this untitled composition, we don't know exactly when or where, but it’s likely oil on canvas. The way he’s put paint to the canvas here, with these jigsaw-like shapes, makes me think about the process of building a painting. The surface has a kind of scrubbed quality with distinct little blocks of color. It's like he's building from the ground up, one small decision at a time. Look at that cluster of reds and greens near the bottom - each dab of paint feels intentional, but also playful, as if he’s responding to whatever came before. It reminds me of Guston, or maybe even early Diebenkorn, in the way it balances representation and abstraction. The painting doesn't give us easy answers, but invites us to keep looking, keep questioning. In the end, that's what makes art so exciting, right? It's always a conversation, never a monologue.