Canvas fragment c. 20th century

Editor: We're looking at Barnett Newman's "Canvas fragment", of indeterminate date, a small piece of material housed at the Harvard Art Museums. I'm immediately struck by its raw, almost unfinished quality. What do you see in this unassuming piece? Curator: The formalist approach invites us to consider the fragment not as incomplete, but as a self-contained object. Observe the texture of the canvas, the weave, and the frayed edges. How do these elements speak to the artwork's inherent qualities and structure? Editor: So, it's less about what it *might* have been, and more about what it *is*? The texture is quite rough, almost like burlap. Curator: Precisely. Consider also the subtle tonal variations within the canvas itself. These variations create a delicate interplay of light and shadow, lending depth and complexity to the composition. Do you perceive that the composition hints to something greater than the sum of its parts? Editor: I see it now. It's a piece of canvas, but the canvas itself is the subject. Thanks, I've learned a lot about seeing in a new way!