Thundi 2010

Sally Gabori made this painting, Thundi, with what looks like thick brushes or maybe even a palette knife, creating these bold, assertive marks. You can almost feel the weight of the paint, how she layered it on the canvas. Look at that strong yellow section on the right, how it seems to both define a space and reach out at the same time. It’s not just about color, it’s about the physicality of applying paint, the pure joy of the material. The way the white is scrubbed into the surface is very interesting also, it is not quite flat and you can see the trace of each movement. Gabori's work reminds me a little of Joan Mitchell, that same energy and freedom. But Gabori’s got her own thing going on, a unique vision that celebrates the act of painting itself. It shows the power of art to keep evolving and surprising us.