Picabia II (Forgot) 1971

Jim Dine made this artwork, Picabia II (Forgot), with layers of ink, charcoal, and paint. The title's ‘forgot’ suggests the artist is having a frank conversation with himself about how art emerges from memory. The red heart shape is kind of beating there in the middle, this fleshy icon, on top of all that wild darkness. Dine layers up images and words like a kind of visual poetry. You see the words leap and steal, and the word winter. There are faces, a car, a boat with smoke stacks, all floating in this murky grey space. That heart is so juicy, so visceral, a real contrast to the scratchy, almost violent, marks everywhere else. This contrast is totally intentional, and it creates tension. Dine, like Picabia, embraces the absurd, and messy parts of life. It reminds me of Cy Twombly's work, where scribbles and marks create a whole new kind of beauty. It's not about perfection, it's about the process, the energy, and the sheer joy of making.