Untitled No. 1 1981

Agnes Martin made this large square of dreamy, pale color with acrylic and graphite on canvas. I imagine Agnes, quietly, almost meditatively, pulling these horizontal lines across the canvas. She’s leaving traces of subtle color. Look closely! Each line is not quite perfect, wavering ever so slightly. Maybe she’s thinking about music, or the desert. Or maybe she's just lost in the simple act of drawing. I sympathize with the urge to make something so quiet and restrained. It’s like she’s whispering, inviting you to lean in close and really pay attention. It’s so easy to rush through museums, but this painting asks you to slow down. Agnes Martin was part of a generation of artists who were expanding ideas about what painting could be, like her friends, Agnes Gund and Brice Marden. They were all in conversation with each other, trying to find new ways to express themselves. And that's how art moves forward, through dialogue and experimentation, each artist building on the work of those who came before.