Interior 1957

Helen Frankenthaler made this painting, Interior, with loose strokes of varying colours. I can only imagine Frankenthaler at work in her studio. The canvas probably laid out on the floor, maybe she stepped all around it, lost in thought, building up transparent layers of colour. In the top left corner, there's this expressive mark in a muddy brown that really intrigues me. It’s as if the paint was dragged across the surface, leaving a trail of texture in its wake. These soft washes are like a conversation between her and other painters of the time, like Morris Louis, who were experimenting with similar techniques. It's like they’re all bouncing ideas off each other, pushing the boundaries of what painting could be. There’s a sense of openness, an invitation to explore and interpret, rather than to passively observe.