Converge 2011

Harriet Korman made this painting, Converge, with what looks like simple acrylic paint and a steady hand. There’s a real material presence to this work, isn’t there? I mean, look at how the flat matte surface of each triangle pulls forward, but is then pushed back by the next one, in another shade, another angle. There are dark greens next to bright yellows, and pinks beside reds. Korman is a master of this. This black triangle, for example, at the bottom left, is not just black, but made up of many different shades. It’s almost alive with the movement of the brushstrokes. The painting reminds me a bit of Sol LeWitt's wall drawings, in the way that it embraces a simple geometric form to unlock endless perceptual possibilities. It shows how much can be done with limited means. And how different the world looks if you shift your perspective, just a little.