Robert Ryman’s Exhibition “1961-1964”: A Blatant Reminder That Anything Can Be Art

Robert Ryman’s (b.1930) exhibition 1961- 1964 on display at David Zwimer gallery; curated by Dieter Schwarz. Displays a different side of Robert Ryman, a more colorful side.

The use of skill and imagination during the production of aesthetic forward objects has been debated by philosophers who question whether an object is considered art.

The traditional Ryman style brings consistent familiarity with coats and layers of white or off-white paint strokes in various directions. The essence of a “blank canvas” without being blank. The slick contrast between minimalism and maximalism becomes almost intolerable at a point. Familiar with Ryman’s process of using the single color white, not mixed with other colors or shades. I was surprised to see a few canvases with color! Shades of blue, orange, and green strokes sat within the background as white layers began to overshadow, bringing an interesting contrast to his known style.

I started to wonder if I was still at a Ryman exhibition. A compliment: I always wondered how a man living in Greenwich Village post World War Two could choose to paint the same color on every canvas. This exhibition gave a different perspective to Ryman’s work. Now, my question isn’t why he chose his repetitive nature but if the influence of capitalism swayed his decision.

Artists tend to have their primary style that influences their practice and progression. Still, within this show, curator Dieter Schwarz displayed the progress of developing one’s focus into the minimalist mindset by not overthinking and adding more but stripping the element of excess, even during the titling period of thought. A simple “Untitled” will do.

As I entered the show’s third and final room, I found a small textured blue canvas, “Untitled Study, 1963,” a reasonably interesting work saved for last that combats all preconceived notions that one may have when stepping in a Ryman Exhibition. Small but beautiful as the blue background overlayed with purple, then again with white strokes displays the prevalence within the application of white. No matter how saturated with another color, the canvas may be. The pigment white serves as a blanket, forcing the viewer to look deeper to think clearly, and rather than appreciating an image, you have a momentary sensation of nothingness, a moment every person deserves and should experience. 

Robert Ryman’s work still screams capitalism, but this show displays a more wholesome atmosphere before having a huge audience, let alone a large studio. An atmosphere we can only obtain through viewing his art, may he Rest In Peace.