Untitled (SFP89-105) 1989

Here we have an untitled work by Sam Francis, who made this riot of colour with paint on canvas. I see a real love of process here. The colours are applied with such a wild abandon, dripping and pooling in luscious ways. The material quality of the paint is on full display, thick and juicy in some areas, transparent and watery in others. Look how the bright orange seems to bloom across the center of the canvas, a floral explosion frozen in time. Those little rivulets of paint give a real sense of movement, as if the piece is still in the act of becoming. And the heavy drips at the bottom? They ground the whole composition, like roots anchoring a plant. Francis reminds me a little of Joan Mitchell in his commitment to colour, but where Mitchell's work feels vast and landscape-like, Francis's feels more intimate, like a concentrated burst of energy. For me, this work is less about answers and more about possibilities.