Triangular Fugue III 1965

John Dowell made this print, Triangular Fugue III, and it strikes me as a real exploration of mark-making. There's a kind of frenetic energy here, a process of layering and building up images that feels both deliberate and intuitive. I’m drawn to the physicality of the piece, the way the textures play against each other. Dowell's use of color is interesting too – this soft yellow ochre background really makes the vivid reds and greens pop. Look at the central triangle, how it bleeds and pools, creating these unexpected shapes and depths. It’s like he's letting the medium dictate the direction, embracing the happy accidents that come with printmaking. It reminds me a bit of Cy Twombly's work, in the sense that it’s not about representation, but about the pure joy of making marks and creating a visual language that's all its own. It shows us that art can be a conversation, an ongoing exploration of ideas and techniques.