Fugue 1969

Edward Landon made "Fugue" using linocut on paper. It's a series of vertical stripes in shades of beige, white, black, and a single red one. I wonder how Landon conceived of this work? I imagine he built it up, cutting away at the linoleum block, proofing, and re-cutting in a constant back and forth. It's so like jazz! The push and pull of improvisational form. That lone red stripe standing out amidst the monochrome feels defiant, alive. The surface has a lovely flatness, yet the composition feels dynamic. It reminds me a little of Sean Scully’s stripe paintings, but with a graphic sensibility. The shapes suggest doorways or passages to step through. Perhaps Landon was thinking about music, or maybe he was just playing with shapes and colors until something emerged. It’s so satisfying when that happens, isn't it? Artists are always riffing off each other across time, picking up on ideas, transforming them, and pushing them in new directions.