Untitled 2002

Doreen Reid Nakamarra made this untitled painting with what looks like fine brushes and earth-toned acrylics. It’s a real feat of patience. I imagine Nakamarra hunched over the canvas, each stroke a meditation. The top and bottom sections are filled with vertical lines, like rain or tall grasses. Then, there's this band of horizontal marks, almost like a woven mat, cutting across. It gives the painting a layered, almost geological feel. It reminds me a little of Agnes Martin’s subtle grids, but with a raw, hand-hewn quality. I’m struck by how this simple act of mark-making can evoke a sense of place, of landscape, of time. It’s a reminder that painting is, in the end, a conversation, an ongoing exchange of ideas and gestures. And it’s up to us to keep listening, keep looking, and keep feeling.