Study for "Steam" 1969

Robert Morris made this study for "Steam" using graphite on paper. The pencil lines loop and swarm, and I can feel Morris mapping out this ephemeral idea. He’s not just depicting something; he's trying to capture something elusive and in motion. You know, it's a reminder that art isn't always about making something solid. Sometimes, it's about pointing to the things that slip through our fingers. I wonder if he ever worried if it would work. I mean, it's just graphite on paper, but it's a proposition for something else. It is so light it looks like it could float away. It makes me think of other artists working with the immaterial, like Yves Klein and his Leap into the Void. We all want to escape sometimes!