Untitled 1950s

This small untitled drawing was made by William Baziotes sometime in his career, probably using ink on paper. It looks like he made it without a plan! The shapes hover in the middle of the page, connected to each other in a strange way. I can make out what looks like a table in the lower register, but what’s on the table? Or what’s looming above it? There's a playful quality to it, it’s almost humorous. The simplicity of the line creates a sense of immediacy, as if Baziotes was just letting his hand wander and seeing what emerged. This reminds me of some drawings made by Joan Miró. There’s a similar sense of biomorphic abstraction, of forms that are vaguely recognizable but ultimately unidentifiable. For Baziotes, as for Miró, the act of drawing was a way of tapping into the subconscious, of letting the imagination run wild. It's cool, the way art invites us to look a little longer, and to ask more questions.