From Chaos, Order

24 in x 24 in

2/2026

My goal for this painting was to incorporate both disordered and ordered components to it.  I decided to make a central, off-kilter, square rotated against its canvas, surrounded by four identical triangles to fill in the space made by the square's rotation. The square is made up of precise geometric shapes, laid down with symmetry in mind and guided by a grid laid down from the corners and divisions of the canvas.  The surrounding triangular shapes were made by first laying down a background of white, letting it dry completely, then dripping dabs of different greys, blacks and silvers down onto the white and finally using a sgraffito technique to scratch in lines using color shifters (basically paintbrushes with silicon tips on the end instead of bristles). The concept here is that the ordered central square arises from the chaos of the bordering triangles.

The tilt of the central square gives the impression that the field might be in motion, yet it is held in place by a rigid, black border. The square and the triangles are all bordered by a textured antique silver rim. The restricted grayscale palette—ranging from near-black to bright white— focuses attention on structure, contrast, and geometry.  The small silver dots added to the painting give added interest. Taken together, the painting reads as an exploration of how ordered systems can emerge from chaotic complexity.