Abstract Composition
This conversation is connected to Abstract Composition.
Upright forms suggesting figures, and others closer to vessels or architectural elements — are drawn in dark maroon-brown lines over a patchwork of saturated color: salmon pink, sky blue, yellow, olive green, red-orange, gray, and teal. A red ladder-like shape sits at the lower left. The composition is loose and open, with the paint applied in dry, scraped strokes and the board visible in places. The dark linear drawing sits on top of the color rather than being contained by it. This is late Adler, and the palette is considerably brighter and more varied than his earlier wartime work. The maroon outlines still hold the composition together, but the mood has shifted from the heavy, gritty figures of the Scottish period toward something more open and almost decorative. Oil on board.