Composition néo-plastique no. 5 O 1926

Cesar Domela created this neo-plastic composition with precise lines and blocks of primary colours. It’s like a mathematical equation made visible. I imagine Domela wrestling with the canvas, trying to find the perfect balance. There must have been a point where he questioned everything! A little nudge here, a line adjusted there, until it all clicked into place. It’s about creating harmony, an equilibrium. See the way the black lines intersect? They're not just boundaries but pathways, guiding your eye around the composition. And those bold, flat colors—red, blue, yellow—they're so clean, so deliberate. The colors don't mix or blend, they’re in conversation, pushing and pulling against one another. You know, these artists like Domela, Mondrian, and others, they were all talking to each other, trying to figure out how to represent the world in its simplest form. It’s about reducing things to their essence, the bare bones of form and color. For me, painting is always a site of inquiry, a process of asking questions and not necessarily having all the answers.