Interior design
An Agnes Martin Sensation
Wednesday, 21 October 2009
Posted by Niki Fulton at 19:00 PM in Interior design
Never have I been to an exhibition where the entire collection of work fuses together so well to create such a unique atmosphere as the Anges Martin exhibition currently on at the Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh.
I now completely understand why so few books have been published on the work of Agnes Martin. Images of her work, as you will see from the photograph above do not manage to convey the sensation you feel when you enter a room filled with her paintings. Standing amongst her work you are immersed in a beautiful ethereal environment.
She wanted to convey in her work the feeling you get when you look out over a stunningly beautiful natural landscape. Her trade mark horizontal bands of delicate colour with slight imperfect pencil marks emerging through the paint certainly achieved this for me.
Her paintings, inspired me to recreate this delicate atmosphere in an interior. She uses the most subtle of colours; soft greys, pinks, a hint of green – almost a wash, a transparent effect like a rose or lavender water or a fabric voil. The colours reminded me of some of the dreamy aquatints in Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales. The Scandinavians of course have for a long time used this pale palette - a palette of soft hazy colours taken from the Northern skies and Tundra landscape. Although Agnes Martin spent most of her life in America, I wonder if her ancestral roots from the Isle of Skye has influenced her work?
I absolutely loved this interview where she talks of the imporatance of having an empty mind in order to leave an open vessel for inspiration to land in - a technique I would love to try!
Many thanks to the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art for the image of "Happy Holiday" (1999) by Agnes Martin. Acrylic and graphite on canvas 152.40 x 152.40 cm. Photo by A. Reeve.
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