Green Thursday 1964

Sven Lukin made this Green Thursday painting with bold geometric shapes and a surprisingly restricted colour palette. Look at that orange line snaking through the deep blues and greys; it’s so confident, like a piece of tape stuck on a board, but it also seems like a playful doodle. The way Lukin handles the surface is interesting. It’s smooth, almost like it’s been printed, yet you can sense the hand of the artist in the careful placement of each shape. That floating blue square is super cool, breaking up the space and casting a subtle shadow. It reminds me a bit of early Frank Stella, you know, with that hard-edge abstraction and focus on the objectness of the painting. Ultimately, this piece is about seeing how simple forms and colours can create a dynamic and engaging visual experience. It’s like a conversation between shapes, each one responding to the other, creating something new and unexpected.