Burnt Umber & Ultramarine I 1981

Yun Hyong-keun made "Burnt Umber & Ultramarine I" with oil on canvas. He’s got these blurred-edged shapes, kinda like dark doorways, floating in a milky, light-filled ground. Imagine him staining the canvas, the paint soaking in, almost like watercolor. It's thin, not gloppy or textured, which makes it feel like a breath. You know, that slow, meditative kind that Agnes Martin also went for, and Rothko, too. He must have been thinking about them. See how the edges of those shapes are fuzzy? Like he didn't want them to be too defined, too solid. It’s more about the atmosphere, the feeling, the mood. Those dark stains almost feel like a weight, like the earth, but then they lighten and float. I'm betting he wants us to feel grounded, but also to be free, floaty, weightless! It's cool how artists keep talking to each other across time, isn't it?