Grey and Brown Stripes 1958

Patrick Heron made this print, 'Grey and Brown Stripes,' without a date, using a screenprinting technique. The layered stripes create a push-pull effect, each band a record of gestures and color interactions, like a diary entry of the day. Look at the bottom stripe; you can almost feel the pressure and drag of the squeegee as it deposits the ink. The way the colors overlap and bleed into each other reminds me of watercolor painting. It shows the artist thinking through the process, almost improvising as the image unfolds. Heron's process shares affinities with Helen Frankenthaler's soak-stain technique. Both artists are less concerned with traditional ideas of composition and instead see the canvas as a field for experimentation. And that's why art is so amazing, isn't it? It’s an ongoing conversation across time, with artists borrowing, riffing, and responding to each other's ideas.