Portal 1993

Robert Keyser made this print, Portal, sometime in the twentieth century. The stark palette of black, white, and blue is the first thing I notice, then the way he uses the white of the paper to create an almost architectural space. It's a study in contrasts, right? The solid blue frame and the jagged black lines, the hard edges versus the soft curves. Look at how the black lines don't quite meet, leaving gaps, as if the image is fractured or incomplete. It reminds me of an aerial view, maybe a city seen from above, or even an abstract map of the mind. There's something unsettling about it. A simple composition, but it keeps you looking, searching for some kind of resolution. I wonder if Keyser knew the work of someone like Dorothea Rockburne? Both artists share an interest in geometry, and using a restrained palette to create complex and evocative works. But maybe that's just me seeing connections where there aren't any. Art is all about embracing the unknown, right?