Composition 1982

This is Hryhorii Havrylenko's "Composition," made with colored pencils. Imagine the artist, patiently layering pinks, reds, greens, and blues, building this field of soft, organic shapes. It’s like a garden, or maybe a dreamscape. I wonder what Havrylenko was thinking about while he made this? Was he also thinking about other artists? I like to think that artists are in constant conversation, across time and space. This piece makes me think of Bonnard's color palettes and forms, the way he dissolved form into light. But here, everything is a bit more contained, more graphic. The colored pencil gives it a kind of quiet intensity. See how the marks cluster and gather, creating rhythms and patterns? Each little stroke contributes to the overall feel, a kind of gentle, pulsating energy. I think the best paintings invite us into a space of contemplation. This is definitely one of them!