89a 1989

Atsuko Tanaka made this painting, 89a, using enamel on canvas. Looking at her process, you see that the artmaking is about both intention and accident. The thing I like about enamel is how shiny and smooth it is. The marks are very physical, like she's pushing the paint around, making these trails and dots and rings. Look at those little circles that are attached to the bigger circles. It's like she's mapping something out, but it's not a map of a place. It's more like a map of energy, the kind that zips and crackles. You can see the paint is drippy but congealed, which makes the circles very lively and sculptural. Tanaka's work has a connection to Hilma af Klint, another artist who used abstract shapes and colors to represent inner worlds and spiritual forces. Both artists invite us to think of art as a portal to unseen dimensions, where meaning is fluid and always in motion.