Black Sun 1953

Alexander Calder made this painting, Black Sun, with bold strokes of black paint on a white background. I can imagine Calder in his studio, perhaps with music playing, moving around the canvas as he paints. The marks are so direct. Look at the way that big curve sweeps across the canvas, thick and thin, like a brush dancing. I can feel the energy and spontaneity of Calder's hand, almost as if I'm there with him, sharing that moment of creation. This piece reminds me of the way Joan Miró used simple shapes to suggest complex ideas, and you can also see echoes of Matisse's cut-outs, that same playful approach to form and space. I think of artists as being in conversation with one another, responding to each other's work across time. Painting is a form of expression that embraces ambiguity, allowing for endless interpretations.