Enigma c. 1984

Isia Leviant created this visual vortex with paint on paper. The circles of lavender, red, and black draw you in, don’t they? I imagine Leviant stepping back, squinting, adding another layer, another ring. It’s almost hypnotic. I feel like I’m peering into a tunnel, and the artist is asking me to think about what it means to see, to focus. The solid blocks of color contrast so sharply with the radiating lines; it sets my eyes buzzing. There’s an almost psychedelic quality to the way the lines seem to vibrate, giving the piece an energy that feels very contemporary. Leviant must have been aware of other Op artists, of course, but her mark-making feels very particular, very considered. Like she’s building something from the center outward. And in the end, these works are the result of one artist in conversation with herself and the entire history of abstraction.