Interior II 1961

William Brice made Interior II using crayon or charcoal, or something like that. See how the marks kind of hover, giving a sense of form without ever really describing it? It’s a process of feeling more than seeing, a way of making that doesn’t quite settle. I love the way Brice coaxes the figure out of the ground here, this woman emerging, or maybe sinking, into the pillows. It’s all about tone and pressure, how hard or soft he presses down, the way the smudges build up in certain areas. Look at the darkness massing around her head, and compare that to the lighter strokes across the bedspread. It's so easy to make marks, but it's difficult to make them communicate. This reminds me a bit of de Kooning, the way the figure dissolves into its surroundings. It's like a dream state, where things aren't quite solid, and everything is open to interpretation. And that’s the beauty of art, isn’t it? It's never fixed.