Rose Hips c. 1969

Art Green made "Rose Hips" as a drawing on paper, and when I look at it, I think about how one mark leads to another, and another, and another... What strikes me first is the texture created by the graphite, how the artist allows the marks to build up and define form and space. Look at the hair, a series of looping gestures give a sense of volume. This is a drawing about structure, but also about the potential for art to play around with ideas. And what are those ideas? A figure on a plinth, but also, hands pulling back curtains, revealing something else. It's almost like a stage! I’m reminded of Philip Guston’s late drawings. Not in terms of style, but more in the sense of free association, and a willingness to embrace the open-ended nature of art making.