Composition 1982

This piece, simply titled Composition, was made with coloured pencil by Hryhorii Havrylenko. He has built up the image with thousands of tiny strokes, a real labour of love. Looking closely at the surface of this drawing, you can see a kind of shimmering effect, created by the layering of colours. The overall impression is of floating forms, like looking through a slightly fogged window. The colours are muted, almost pastel-like, but then you have these pops of crimson that really draw your eye. There's a circular form right in the middle, and it feels like the anchor for the whole thing. It reminds me of the work of Agnes Martin, particularly her use of subtle colour and geometric forms to create a sense of calm and balance. I love the way that Havrylenko embraces ambiguity here, offering us a space to wander and wonder.