Pioggia d'Oro (Golden Rain) 1988

Curator: This is Sam Francis's "Pioggia d'Oro," or "Golden Rain," created in 1988. Editor: My immediate reaction is sunshine and a bit of delightful chaos, if that makes any sense. A happy sort of mess. Curator: It does! The geometric grid provides structure but is absolutely bursting with colour and the texture achieved by watercolor and acrylic paint. Looking at it, I feel like I'm glimpsing little fragmented worlds through golden windows. There's almost a sense of liberation within confinement. Editor: Ah, those materials though—acrylic and watercolor combined? That's Francis challenging established painting practices by uniting those mediums. Is this not about democratizing art-making, breaking down the established hierarchy? Curator: Precisely, in some ways. And beyond mere material experimentation, Francis might have been drawn to these materials for their ephemeral, translucent qualities, suggesting a world constantly in flux. He certainly explored Abstract Expressionism in a deeply idiosyncratic way. Editor: Considering that the 1980s saw the rise of global financial markets and, indeed, fortunes seemingly appearing from nowhere...this rain of gold could certainly represent that zeitgeist. Gold for the few! Curator: Hmmm, I read it more as a symbolic alchemy, of transforming the mundane into something precious, a visual poem about the endless potential contained within chaos. It speaks to the beautiful unpredictability of existence, that through uncertainty, and through all of the changes that we have, there is also beauty. Editor: Fair. Regardless, I still see art about class. I suppose both our perspectives are needed here to see "Golden Rain" in all its prismatic beauty! Curator: Perhaps! Regardless of the social critique, this painting captures something truly joyous. Something wonderfully unresolved.