The Kiss
This conversation is connected to The Kiss.
Two abstract figures reduced to thin, angular lines lean into each other, their heads touching at the top of the composition. The bodies are barely there: a few intersecting strokes of dark brown-black line defining shoulders, torsos, and limbs, with pale olive-green and muted rose filling the enclosed shapes. The background is horizontal striations of gray, brown, and lavender, giving the surface a wood-grain or combed texture. The painting is almost monochromatic — browns, grays, a little green, a little pink — with the red signature providing the only bright color. This is the most pared-down Adler in the shop. Where the other paintings are dense with color and texture and sand-grit surfaces, this one is nearly empty — two people, a few lines, a kiss. Oil on board.