Composition 1983

Stig Brøgger made this painting called "Composition" with paint on canvas, though the date is unknown. The muted ground feels pretty calm and still, like it was laid down first and left to dry. I can imagine Brøgger making it, maybe stepping back, squinting, trying out this and that. That little pink squiggle jumps right out, sitting up there on the top left, all glittery and alive, contrasting with the flat greeny-brown corner shape below. It's so simple. You can see that it has a conceptual bent, yet it's still pretty playful. It reminds me of other painters interested in this kind of formal and pared back abstract language. It reminds us that artists are always in conversation, picking up on each other's ideas, and pushing them further. And ultimately, it's about how marks and shapes can speak volumes, even with very little.