Marker California 1986

Doug Ohlson made this painting, "Marker California," using simple shapes and bold colors. It's all about the way he puts the colors together, it feels like he's letting us in on his process. The colors in this painting are so vibrant, but also kind of quiet. Like the red and pink squares, next to the strip of green – they sit so neatly against each other. Up top there’s those two rectangles of blue too, the one on the left feels like it’s vibrating a bit more than the other. When I look closely I can see the way he’s layered the paint, letting some areas be more transparent than others. It’s almost like he’s revealing his thinking, one layer at a time. This reminds me of work by someone like Sean Scully. Like him, Ohlson is playing with the idea of seeing painting as a conversation with other painters. And it’s a conversation that’s always open to new interpretations.