Variation No. 4 1971 - 1972

Curator: Looking at Victor Pasmore's "Variation No. 4", I'm immediately struck by its odd gentleness. Editor: It's like musical notation transcribed by someone half-asleep. I sense quietude, with a hint of melancholy. What should we make of its place in the Tate Collections? Curator: Pasmore moved away from representational painting in the late 1940s, embracing abstraction. Works like this represent his exploration of space and form. Editor: The arrangement of shapes reminds me of stepping stones across a stream. Playful, yet carefully considered. Curator: Indeed. Pasmore's shift reflected a broader societal move towards modernism, influencing architectural design and public art. What is interesting to me is that this abstract work does not have any creation date associated with it. Editor: Ultimately, it's less about what it represents and more about how it makes us feel. A moment of quiet contemplation in a noisy world.