Cell No. 1 1992

Absalon made this Cell No. 1 sometime before 1993, and it is not painting but you could almost call it one because the volume and surface is just everything here. It's so interesting how the whole thing is so stark, but still the curves soften it and make it approachable. Looking at it makes me think about minimalism and how that style uses simple shapes to create emotion. It also reminds me a little bit of some of the early experiments with architecture and space of someone like Gordon Matta-Clark, or even the colour and shapes of Ellsworth Kelly’s paintings which reduce lived experience to blocks of pure colour. The texture is what really grabs me. It's smooth, but you can tell that it's built-up, it seems like the gesture of a brushstroke has been extruded and inflated to become a habitable space. That small door is an invitation, but also kind of ominous. Is it a refuge or a trap? With art, as with life, there’s never just one answer.