Bedford II 1981

Joan Mitchell made this work, Bedford II, using lithography on paper. What strikes me is how the entire surface is teeming with marks! It’s all-overness is very much like Pollock, but the way Mitchell allows the light of the paper to come through the layers of ink feels very contemporary. Looking closely, you can almost feel her hand moving across the surface, layering blues, greens, and purples. See how these marks bunch together to create a dense, almost impenetrable thicket of color. And yet, there's a real sense of airiness; the white of the paper peeks through, giving the piece a feeling of depth and luminosity. The scribbled, chaotic marks could be compared to Cy Twombly, or perhaps even a wilder, more colorful Guston. Ultimately, Bedford II is about the push and pull between control and chance, structure and chaos. It shows the conversations between artists, and how we continue to borrow, steal, and reimagine each other’s ideas.