Autumn Day 1973

Petros Malayan made "Autumn Day" with paint, but from the looks of it he could have been using anything to hand! The surface of the work is really built up, like layers of sediment. What really grabs me is the contrast between the muted tones, mostly browns and greys, and then, zing, there's this jolt of yellow in the lower left. It looks like a spotlight shining on that one building. There's a sense of depth, of looking through a screen of branches and buildings. It reminds me a bit of some of Bonnard's paintings with their intimate, domestic views, like we're glimpsing something private and familiar. But where Bonnard used vibrant colour, Malayan has this melancholic, earthy feel. For me, it speaks to the way artists have always looked to each other, building on, and responding to what has come before, in an endless visual conversation.