Fugue 1908

Mikalojus Konstantinas Ciurlionis made "Fugue" using gentle washes of color and delicate brushstrokes. I can see the artist's hand moving across the surface, building up layers of translucent tones. There's a sense of searching here, of feeling the way through the painting, coaxing the image into being. I wonder what Ciurlionis was thinking about as he worked. The way he painted here reminds me of a cave painting. That continuous line of figures at the bottom, painted in simple strokes, grounds the composition. Look at how their rhythm is mirrored above, in the wispy figures above. A lot of abstract paintings are called musical, but this one is really about music. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I know it’s related to memory, time, and rhythm. Artists are always riffing off each other, even across centuries. Ciurlionis was probably thinking about other artworks as he made this. We never create in a vacuum, it’s all one big conversation.