Hiver 1950

Alfred Manessier made "Hiver", or "Winter", with oil paint, creating a world of shapes and colors that somehow feels both still and turbulent. You can see how he builds up the surface, layer by layer, those blacks and greys feel thick and chalky. It's like he's carving space out of darkness. There's a strange, almost architectural quality to the forms, as though we are viewing the foundations of a city. But then, there are those surprising pops of color – a bright orange or a flash of green that just won’t sit still, they vibrate! That small green circle, slightly off center, acts as an anchor for the entire picture. Manessier reminds me a little of someone like Milton Avery, using color to create a mood as much as an image. His art invites us to embrace the unexpected, to find beauty in the unresolved and to understand that art, like life, is always a process of becoming.