Tegn III 1966

Jan Groth made "Tegn III" using simple materials, creating a world of ambiguity from a black surface and a white line. There's something so immediate about the single gesture, so clear and yet so open. It makes me think about how drawings are just thoughts made visible, like a diagram of an idea. The texture of the line is so important here. You can almost feel the give of the material as Groth made the work, the way the line wobbles and varies in weight. That slight tremor in the mark feels deeply human to me. And the way the line intersects itself, how it seems to hover above a flat plane, gives the drawing a sense of depth and movement. Groth was interested in the tension between the planned and the accidental, a tension that reminds me of Cy Twombly's scribbled marks and abstract compositions. In both artists' work, there's a willingness to embrace imperfection and to let the process of artmaking guide the final result. Ultimately, it’s this ambiguity that allows the viewer to bring their own experiences and interpretations to the piece, making it feel deeply personal and resonant.