Brown and Black 1972

Curator: Anni Albers’s "Brown and Black", held here at the Harvard Art Museums, presents two rectangular fields teeming with tessellated triangles. It’s a masterclass in the possibilities of weaving, even within a restricted palette. Editor: I'm immediately struck by how contained yet restless it feels. Like a beautifully organized panic attack. The precision is comforting, but those shifting triangles suggest something is always about to…unravel? Curator: Exactly! Albers was deeply invested in the social implications of textiles, elevating weaving from craft to high art by emphasizing process. Note how the geometric abstraction nods to industrial production while retaining hand-made qualities. Editor: It’s like she’s caught between two worlds. The rigid forms speak of the machine age, but the subtle variations feel intensely human. I imagine her at the loom, lost in the rhythm, finding freedom within repetition. Curator: A fitting reflection. Her explorations of material and labor practices certainly challenge conventional art hierarchies. Editor: The quiet power of cloth! It makes you reconsider what art can be.