Ruins at Night 1963

"Ruins at Night" by Rudy Pozzatti looks like it was made with a printmaking process, a space built with layers of black ink. There’s a real push-pull here between representation and abstraction that I find so compelling, like he is conjuring a memory. The velvety blacks and stark whites create a dramatic contrast; the texture looks thick, almost sculpted, with the darkness broken up by highlights that catch the eye. Those column-like shapes, are they ruins, or are they simply marks, and how do they come together to create a place? The way the inky blacks bleed into the paper reminds me of Piranesi’s etchings of Roman ruins. There's a sense of romantic decay, but also a celebration of the possibilities of the medium itself, and the way it can create a world from nothing. Ultimately, it’s a reminder that art is as much about the process of making as it is about the final image.