Untitled (Abstraction) 1967

Curator: Here we have Martin Russell Hurtig’s 1967 print, titled "Untitled (Abstraction)". Editor: Immediately, I’m struck by the high contrast and stark arrangement. The combination of chaotic linework with these hard, geometric shapes generates a rather unsettling feeling. Curator: Yes, the monochrome palette certainly emphasizes that feeling. Hurtig made this print during a period of intense experimentation with abstract expressionism, a time when artists sought to convey emotions through non-representational forms. Looking at the social backdrop of the late 1960s, with its escalating civil unrest and political upheaval, do you think that anxiety is expressed here? Editor: I do. The recurring black blocks may be symbolic of some oppressive structure, punctuated by flurries of energetic, defiant white lines, like desperate scratches across the surface of a confining world. Curator: Interesting, given the context of the period, one could interpret the abstract imagery as representing underlying societal tensions, reflecting feelings of alienation and discord which often marked this particular historical period. But how are we to connect it to other pieces in the abstract expressionist movement? Editor: Despite its coldness, it contains within its chaotic gestures some deep and mysterious essence; a subconscious force fighting for some unnamable truth or meaning. Curator: A fitting notion, and one that seems so representative of much art that was coming out of that specific period in the late 60s. The tension here certainly captures that unrest that dominated art during that period, where much felt almost an obligation to capture or address those cultural tensions in their artwork. Editor: Yes, despite the unsettling nature of its overall effect, or perhaps because of it, this abstraction seems to communicate on a deeper emotional level, resonating even now, decades later. Curator: A potent combination, Hurtig successfully captures that time in his bold and decisive print, securing its place in abstract-expressionist history.