Untitled [triangle and square] 1978

Here is a painting of raw geometric forms, rendered in a playful palette of reds, yellows, and blues by Edward Avedisian. Imagine the artist stepping up to the canvas, brush loaded, ready to engage in a dialogue with the surface. The painting emerges through layers of vibrant colors, each stroke a record of a decision made, revised, and sometimes contradicted. I can almost feel Avedisian’s presence as he built up these layers. Look at the way he’s outlined that orange triangle with pink, kind of gingerly, kind of awkward, but also bold. What was he thinking as he worked? Was he considering the push and pull of color, the tension between the geometric and the organic? Did he ever think of throwing it all away? This reminds me of some of the New York School painters who mixed high and low references like Philip Guston. Painting is a conversation, after all. We build on what came before, respond to our peers, and hope that someone will pick up the thread and carry it forward. Each gesture holds a world of possibility, and invites us to join the conversation.