Derrynan V 1967

Editor: This is Harold Cohen's "Derrynan V" from the Tate Collections. It's quite an intriguing composition. The stones create a sense of depth, but the black dots flatten the perspective. What stands out to you? Curator: The interplay of texture and form is indeed compelling. Note the artist’s manipulation of the picture plane through contrasting elements. The stones, rendered with halftone dots, establish a ground, while the solid black circles disrupt this illusion, asserting the two-dimensionality of the surface. Editor: So you're saying the dots are a way of reminding us that we're looking at a flat surface? Curator: Precisely. The artist employs a visual push and pull, a tension between representation and abstraction. Observe how the distribution of the circles creates a subtle compositional rhythm, a counterpoint to the randomness of the stones. Editor: I hadn't considered the rhythm created by the dots. I'll have to look at this differently now. Curator: It is in such formal relationships that the work yields its meaning.