Art Theory Text with Configuration Field Diagrams 1941

Curator: This is Stuart Davis's "Art Theory Text with Configuration Field Diagrams," currently residing at the Harvard Art Museums. It's essentially a page of handwritten notes and diagrams. Editor: Immediately, I'm struck by the intimacy of it. It feels like a glimpse into Davis's artistic process, raw and unfiltered. The paper itself has aged, adding another layer of history. Curator: Absolutely. Davis was deeply concerned with how we perceive space in painting. Here, he's exploring the idea of "configuration fields," trying to define the fundamental visual relationships. Editor: Note the diagrams he sketches. They’re incredibly simple, almost childlike, yet they represent these complex spatial relationships that Davis is trying to articulate. It’s a fascinating tension. Curator: He’s searching for a visual language, almost like a code, to explain abstract painting. It mirrors his own journey as he synthesized European modernism with American subject matter. Editor: It makes you wonder about the cultural context, how Davis, alongside other artists, grappled with the post-war world and sought new ways to represent reality. This piece acts as an artifact of that cultural shift. Curator: It's a reminder that even the most abstract art has roots in concrete ideas and lived experiences. Editor: Indeed, a testament to the power of visual thinking and its intersection with historical currents.