Grid Twenty-Eight 1970

Thomas Downing created this painting, Grid Twenty-Eight, with a clear love of yellow and a steady hand. Imagine him at work, maybe using stencils, maybe not, but carefully placing each circle onto a ground that seems to glow from within. I wonder what he was thinking, working within such a tight grid? Repetition can be freeing, a chance to meditate on a single form. Each circle is a little different; like musical notes in a scale, the subtle variations are what make it sing. The paint seems thin, almost stained into the canvas, giving the whole thing a kind of airy lightness. It reminds me of Agnes Martin's grids, but with a sunny disposition. Painters are always talking to each other, across time and space, riffing on the same themes. With painting we learn to embrace nuance, and it reminds us there is not one singular vision, and that is alright.