Pyrography on Linen 1959

Henk Peeters made this pyrography on linen, and it's all about these marks, right? Like each one is so individual even though they're in this tight grid. It’s like, what does it mean to make a painting, you know? Peeters took this linen and burned these marks onto it. You can almost smell the fire, that singed scent. Look at the surface; it's got this bumpy texture from the linen and the varying tones of the charred spots. It’s so quiet. It reminds me of Agnes Martin, but like, if Agnes Martin liked fire. That one mark in the upper left, it's darker, thicker. It's the anchor for my eye. What he’s doing here is just so simple, yet so profound. It’s not trying to fool you into thinking it’s anything other than what it is: linen, fire, and a guy making marks.