Untitled (From Ten Works by Ten Painters) 1964

This untitled print was made by Robert Motherwell, one of ten works by ten painters. I just love the simplicity of it. The colour palette is stripped back: yellow ochre, black and white. Looking at it, I think about the act of artmaking, the process of adding and subtracting, pushing and pulling to make a final piece. The ochre floods the background, setting the tone. It’s earthy, warm but also a bit acidic. The black circle is uneven and full of imperfections, like a clumsy full stop. It hovers, as if it’s been stamped on afterwards. What is it doing there? It reminds me that painting is not just about the visual, it's a physical, tactile thing. Motherwell shares a similar sensibility with Joan Miro in this piece. It shows us how art is an ongoing conversation between artists across time. The meaning is never fixed. It embraces the ambiguity of multiple interpretations.