Details
The image
An X of solid orange filling the sheet from corner to corner, the arms equal in width, the ground left white only in the four triangles it creates. There is no shading and no outline: the shape is the colour and the colour is the shape.
Where it comes from
The poster commemorates an exhibition that opened on 15 March 1966 at the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles, a room that did as much as any other to make the art of that decade visible on the west coast. The image belongs to Ellsworth Kelly’s work: he took ready-made shapes, a curve, a chevron, a letter and enlarged them until the shape became the composition, removing the brushstroke along with the subject. The approach transferred to print perfectly, because nothing needed to be blended and the edge carried the argument.
On the wall
It brings structure and a single strong colour into a room, so it suits a studio, a hallway or a living room with plain furniture. Because the shape is large and symmetrical, it wants a wall where it can sit square rather than beside a corner. In a group it should be the piece that sets the axis.
In company
If you want company for it, the Geometric collection is where to look.Avoid hanging it beside another dominant shape, two compositions of equal weight on one wall argue instead of resting.
