Untitled 1921

This watercolor was made by Hans Hartung, who let’s just say, liked a good abstract gesture. Looking at this piece, I can imagine Hartung standing at his easel, brush in hand, coaxing the colors across the page. The way the washes of purple bleed into the hazy grays and yellows makes me think of a landscape dissolving in mist, a world seen through a veil of feeling. You know, painting with watercolors is tricky. It's all about letting the water do its thing, guiding the pigment, but never fully controlling it. And in this work, there's a real sense of that push and pull between intention and accident. That downward stroke of purple, for example – did he mean for it to pool like that at the mountain's edge, or did the water have its own ideas? Hartung’s work reminds us that painting isn’t just about depicting something, but about creating a space for possibility. He reminds us that art is in ongoing conversation, inspiring each other’s creativity.