IMG 6126 1986

Katsuhito Nishikawa made this painting using very light marks, a faint palette, and a restrained hand. I wonder if he started with the ethereal burst of lines to the left, like an underpainting, then returned another day to create the darker, more defined burst to the right? You can almost feel him thinking, adding, subtracting, maybe even whispering to the canvas as he worked. I’m especially drawn to the way the second burst is formed through the accumulation of fine, hairlike lines. They remind me of Cy Twombly’s scribbles, but with an almost botanical feel. Nishikawa’s painting has a quiet, meditative quality to it. It reminds me of how Agnes Martin used to talk about pursuing perfection through simplicity. Like her, Nishikawa coaxes us to slow down and really look, to find the profound in the seemingly simple. It’s this kind of thoughtful, searching mark-making that makes painting so rewarding.