LINES, PIN MARKS

Lines, pin marks
Barely-there Agnes Martin solo show

Agnes Martin at the Tate, an artists who did her own thing and the master of less is very much more with her faint and broken marks and translucent layers playing havoc with eyes and expectations.

Seemingly serene horizontal line-only pieces can disturb, grids do so much more than seems possible, enigmatic titles offer little, and neat pin marks at the edges of a canvas are the only clue as to practice and making. On the whole we are left to wonder. Which reminds me of Barnet Newman who knew Martin and whose own work does something similar in presenting a simple face and keeping you looking and thinking.

Portrait Agnes Martin
On A Clear Day 1973