‘Happy Holiday’ 1999

Agnes Martin

Our art of the day this time focuses on Agnes Martin (1912 - 2004), an artist whose work of soft colours and pencil lines is inspired by spirituality rather than intellect. With a career spanning decades, Martin first came to prominence in the 1960’s New York abstract expressionism movement. The environment was male-dominated, and yet, she still broke through. Just when she was gaining prominence that her male artist colleagues could only dream about, she upped and left New York, preferring to travel around before settling in New Mexico. She lived and worked there, like many of her contemporaries before her, for the rest of her life, finding continuous inspiration around her.

You may argue that her work is ‘minimalist’, but Martin would disagree. It is true that with works like ‘Happy Holiday’ 1999, there is a zen-like quality to her work. Martin would argue that beauty should not be so intellectually defined; her work is a testament to that fact.