B11 Box Bólide 09 1964

Helio Oiticica’s B11 Box Bólide 09, is like a piece of modernist furniture where color becomes spatial. You can almost smell the paint, feel its slight texture. I think of Oiticica in his studio, trying to work out how to make these simple forms resonate. He shifts things around, tweaking the color. The slightly different yellows, the way it sits on the floor. Is it a sculpture, or is it a painting? He’s probably not sure. It’s all about finding that right balance. The title means "fiery chariot box" or "fireball box". It makes me think of a Joseph Cornell box gone wild with color. The yellow feels kind of Latin American, kind of Brazilian, kind of in your face. The art world is a long, ongoing conversation. It's almost as though Oiticica is talking to Cornell, or Donald Judd, and then they all start talking to you. That’s what I love about painting, sculpture and art in general—that it can be so many things all at once.