Provenance: Provenance: Private Collection, Manila

ABOUT THE WORK

In order for Zobel to achieve visual openness, areas of the canvas are left wistfully bare, thereby allowing the image to breathe and expand. The space in the painting is determined by value contrast as much as by the interaction of hues and the expansive backdrop. To understand Zobel we have to begin by accepting his complete rejection of figurative imitation. This rejection is perfectly obvious in the picture, but during the last mid-century, it may have not been easy for most of the people to accept. For Zobel, this is work is one step on the road towards a purer art form entirely detached from the visible world.