Abstract Composition in Black & Purple 

Boris Margo made this striking abstract composition in black and purple with oil paint, though the exact date is unknown. Margo was part of a wave of European artists who came to the United States in the mid-20th century, driven by war and persecution. Margo's artistic journey took him through various styles, including Surrealism and Cubism, before he developed his own unique approach to abstraction. But what does it mean to abstract something? Looking at this painting through the lens of social history, it feels almost like an experiment in mark-making, an attempt to break free from the constraints of representation and engage with a more immediate visual language. Was he trying to find a new visual language that spoke to the fractured and uncertain world he found himself in? To understand more, we would need to delve into the archives of the artistic communities that Margo participated in, and explore the critical debates around abstraction at the time.