Cabinet d’Amateur #1 1999

Pedro Cabrita Reis made *Cabinet d’Amateur #1* with what looks like a bunch of glossy, vividly coloured panels arranged in a grid-like structure. It looks like what might happen if Agnes Martin and Mondrian went to Home Depot. The colours here are so saturated. The surface looks like glass or polished metal; the panels are pristine. Up close, you can see that each panel seems to be slightly reflective, catching the light in its own way. It’s a reminder that the way we perceive colour can change based on its surroundings. The whole thing strikes me as really playful – like a big, colorful game. It also reminds me a bit of Gerhard Richter’s colour chart paintings, but Reis brings a really unique architectural sensibility to the party. Ultimately, these colourful planes embrace an ambiguity that makes you question fixed meanings.