Composition 1963

This painting by Hryhorii Havrylenko is a riot of color and fractured form; an image that feels like it emerged from a space of pure intuition. The dark green background really makes the reds, yellows, and blues pop. I can imagine Havrylenko, brush in hand, building up the surface, one stroke at a time, searching for that elusive harmony. There’s a push and pull here, a tension between control and chance. Did he start with an idea, or did the painting itself lead the way? Look how each stroke is laid down with such confidence, yet the overall effect is one of delightful chaos. That single red circle floating near the top, like a punctuation mark, holds everything together. It reminds me a little of early Kandinsky, but with a folk art twist. Painting is like a conversation between artists across time and space; each one responding to and riffing off the others, creating something entirely new in the process.