Artwork Description
untitled
Dimensions: 13.75 x 13.75″
Year: 1990
Media: lithograph
Agnes Martin–untitled is yet another example of Martin’s quest for simplicity, inspiration, and profundity. In this piece, she utilizes numerous straight, horizontal lines with ten slightly darker lines that separate the piece into nine sections. At first glance, the lines appear to be perfectly straight; however, upon further inspection, it is clear that these lines were drawn by hand–they contain tiny imperfections that symbolize the absolute uniqueness of the work.
In this work, much like many others of Martin, opts out of a pursuit of intellectualism, and instead leans much more heavily towards spiritualism. She does not utilize color in this piece, but her intentions are still the same. Martin hoped, in the making of such simplistic, geometric works, to plant a positive experience, profound thought, and perhaps even a bit of inspiration within the mind of the viewer.
Martin is heavily associated with New Mexico; it is where she settled for years in isolation and solitude to develop her techniques of simplicity, puristic artistic philosophies, and profound abstraction. She believed that for her art to be successful, any person who experienced it should be able to feel the same positive emotions that she felt while making the work, as well as an inspiration similar to what she experienced. Martin’s philosophies also included an in-depth exploration of the Inner Eye, meditation, and inspiration. She believed that all inspiration comes from a complete detachment from the impulses and urges of the physical world, that only when an artist completely separates themselves from distractions–which is done through meditation–can they truly begin to see profound inspiration through their Inner Eye.
Martin passed away in 2004 in Taos, New Mexico, but she lives on through her students, such as New Mexican sculptress Karen Yank, and her works, which are still celebrated globally.
Lillie Guo