When Radar was New 1971

This sheet was made by Guy de Cointet, and you can almost hear the pen scratching across the paper. I’m imagining the artist's hand, moving and pausing, as words flow and loop. The ink is dark, dense, kind of pooling in places. The strokes are so consistent, it's as if they are dancing together in perfect unison. I look at this and I'm thinking of asemic writing, that is, writing without meaning or language. But look closer, and you can see words emerging in the loops! What was de Cointet thinking when he made this? Was he experimenting with the rhythm and flow of language? Or was he just letting his hand lead the way, lost in the sheer physicality of writing? I'm reminded of Cy Twombly's scribbled paintings—the way those gestures communicate a feeling, an intention, without necessarily spelling anything out. There's a conversation happening between artists across time, a sharing of ideas. It's a reminder that painting, writing, is all about exploration, embracing ambiguity, and letting meaning emerge in its own way.