Untitled (Desert Scrub) Possibly 1996 - 2002

Richard Misrach made this photograph 'Untitled (Desert Scrub)' and in it, you can see a dense field of dry desert vegetation, a matrix of thin, tangled lines in shades of brown and beige. I imagine Misrach out there, maybe squinting in the desert sun, finding beauty in the mundane, and creating a composition out of what many would overlook. There is a tactile, almost sculptural quality to the image. The scrub isn’t flat; it has depth and volume. I can almost feel the dryness, the brittle texture of the desert plants. The surface is thick with detail and the subtle tonal variations create depth, like the layering in a painting. It has a quiet, understated quality. The composition is a field of infinite, and subtle variations. It reminds me of Vija Celmins' drawings of the desert floor or ocean surfaces. Artists who create such works are in a conversation and exchange of ideas across time, inspiring one another’s creativity. Embracing ambiguity and uncertainty allows for multiple interpretations and meaning over fixed or definitive readings.