Panel c. 20th century

This panel, found at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, is by an anonymous artist, and I love not knowing more, it leaves so much to the imagination. The repeated motifs feel like a conversation between chaos and control. I am drawn to the texture, the way the colors bleed and blend, creating these soft, almost feathery edges, the marks are dabbed and dragged. It looks like the kind of thing I would do to test out colors. Look closer, each little blossom is unique, imperfect. The color palette, these muted pinks, greens, and blues, creates a feeling of harmony and a sense of nostalgia. I keep thinking about those marbled endpapers in old books, the kind of thing that Judith Godwin, maybe, would look at for inspiration. It reminds me that art is always an ongoing exchange, never quite resolved and all the more beautiful for it.