Color-Space Field Diagrams 1941

Editor: This is Stuart Davis's "Color-Space Field Diagrams," its date is unknown, and it's currently at the Harvard Art Museums. It seems to be a sketch with handwritten notes about color. What do you make of the relation between the drawing and the text? Curator: The work reveals Davis's engagement with abstract color theory, reflecting a broader cultural interest in the psychology of perception. His notes probe the symbolic power of color, linking it to directions and spatial relationships. It's a very internalized, almost academic understanding of how a color's position represents eternity. Editor: Eternity? That's quite a claim! Curator: Exactly! It reflects the ambitious socio-political function artists sometimes ascribe to abstract art, seeing it as a pathway to universal truths. Editor: I never thought about color theory having that kind of ambition. Curator: It’s a nice reminder that art isn't created in a vacuum. It reflects the artist’s intellectual climate.