Study for Homage to the Square 

Editor: This is a Study for Homage to the Square by Josef Albers. He worked on this series for decades, experimenting with color relationships. What strikes me is the simplicity of the geometric composition against the complexity of colors that produce harmony and, perhaps, tension. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The composition presents a serial investigation into colour field painting, articulated here in Albers’s signature nested squares. The material presence of layered mixed-media—oil and acrylic paint—allows the viewer to analyze surface quality, the materiality and layering generating further investigation. Observe how each color influences those surrounding it, demonstrating Albers's meticulous focus on chromatic interaction. How does the scale influence your perception of this study? Editor: It feels very intimate, more like a notebook entry than a grand statement. The muted colors, the sketch-like quality, they almost whisper rather than shout. The chromatic tension is quite successful. It appears to me that it would not come off that way with, say, stronger hues. Curator: Precisely. The artist achieves through muted tones, creating, yes, an intimate scale of examination. Consider the impact if the squares were not precisely aligned. Or, were different geometric shapes deployed, instead. How does it alter your understanding of its impact if its hues were much stronger and garish? Editor: The off-register squares or, worse, a triangle would remove the calm and meditation offered to our sight. Louder colours would shift the perception and feeling to something more jarring. Albers masterfully shows restraint by way of geometric form and the colours employed. I also realized how essential a close, continuous study can be when dealing with artmaking! Curator: Indeed. By minimizing representational elements, the artist directs us to a fundamental experience of perception and pure visual relationship. I now perceive the work from your insight with fresh eyes and appreciation.