Study for the Muses (Eaglesmere Version)

Brice Marden considers the process of painting to be “about transformation. Taking that earth, that heavy earthen kind of thing, turning it into air and light.” In the 1980s Marden developed a fluid, calligraphic line that resulted in shimmering, interlaced compositions such as Study for the Muses (Eaglesmere Version). His paintings slow the spontaneous brushwork of gestural abstraction to an almost meditative pace. Though it is called a “study,” Marden worked and reworked this painting across nearly a decade, completing it in his studio in Eagles Mere, Pennsylvania, which he describes as the most “Zen-like” of his workspaces. The landscape of Eagles Mere is wet and overgrown with moss and hemlock, features echoed in this painting’s muted palette.