Submerged Form 1968

This lithograph by Graham Sutherland presents a peculiar, organic form, rendered in verdant greens against a stark yellow backdrop. The shape evokes a sense of primal life, perhaps a submerged creature or a distorted plant. Note how Sutherland presents a visual language reminiscent of early Renaissance depictions of mythical beasts—symbols of untamed nature and hidden forces. Think of the dragons in medieval tapestries, creatures embodying chaos and the unknown, lurking in the shadows of our collective psyche. Here, the modern viewer is confronted with a similar sense of unease and curiosity, a tension between the familiar and the alien. The submerged form, with its ambiguous nature, transcends mere representation. It becomes a powerful symbol of the subconscious, echoing the timeless human struggle to reconcile the rational with the instinctive. It speaks to a cyclical return to the primal, where forms are never truly new but always echoes of the past.