Study for Agony 1947

Arshile Gorky made this Study for Agony with crayon and graphite in an unknown year. Isn’t it interesting how Gorky's marks seem to be searching for form, rather than defining it? The scribbled lines create a kind of web, and the smudges of colour appear almost accidental, like stains. I love the way the red form on the left is both grounded and uncontained. There’s something visceral about its shape, and the way the crayon is dragged down the page. It’s like Gorky is digging into the surface, trying to find something real, something solid. This makes me think of de Kooning, another painter who was obsessed with the act of painting itself, and the struggle to make something new out of the chaos of the world. Both artists remind us that art isn't about answers, but about questions. It’s about the process of looking, feeling, and thinking, and embracing the ambiguity of it all.