Collage Painting No. 1 1959

Editor: So, this is Manuel Neri’s *Collage Painting No. 1* from 1959. It’s oil paint, obviously abstract, but there’s something kind of aggressive about it… angular shapes and all. What do you make of it? Curator: Aggressive, yes! But I wonder if we’re also seeing a kind of joyous demolition? Neri is attacking the canvas, yes, but what if he's attacking expectation, too? He’s throwing off the shackles of representation, slinging pigment like a kid with a mud pie. Look at how the forms crash into each other. Do you sense a rhythm, a raw kind of dance, maybe even a wild abandon? Editor: I guess I see that. So the jagged edges and contrasting colors aren’t supposed to be jarring? It’s more… energetic? Curator: Exactly! Think about the Abstract Expressionists. They weren’t aiming for pretty pictures; they were after pure, unadulterated feeling. For Neri, I believe painting isn't about reproducing reality; it's about creating a new one. Almost as if to be reborn out of a cacophony of form and gesture. See those flashes of bright color amidst the darker tones? Maybe it’s a glimpse of that, the promise of…what, though? Editor: Freedom? Curator: Precisely! Editor: Okay, I definitely understand it more now. It's like I needed to look beyond the surface to see the deeper emotion. Curator: Exactly, let your perception wander freely and your reaction will be less about “analyzing,” and more about the gut feeling that is there to be taken! Editor: This painting suddenly has a whole new life for me! Curator: Indeed. It is no longer static; instead, alive with the opportunity to evolve as our interpretations change over time.