Page 19 - Studio International - July August 1974

painting has this same kind of quality. The epic
seems increasingly foreign to modernism, CORRESPONDENCE
lacking the feeling of self-containment and
internal equilibrium which forces us to look at
modernist paintings as finished aesthetic
objects. Modernist taste is suspicious of
anything that is too blatantly an expression, and
is repelled by rhetoric, anything that gestures
to us calling for our attention. Rather, a feeling
of an existence which is independent of our
presence, belongs to the best in recent art.
This, of course, poses especial problems for
figuration of any kind, lest it separately address
the viewer within the work, and lest it enforce
its own separate meanings by virtue of its own
specificity. As Fried points out, it was by
revoking traditional figuration that Pollock
briefly achieved a sublimation of his own
literal feelings, and it was by facing the problems
of figuration that Louis achieved a style that was
personal by virtue of its very autonomy.
Something of this was presaged within Abstract
Expressionism, not only in Pollock's all-over
style but in Newman, Rothko and Still as well.
By 1955, however, if not in fact before, these
artists had lost something of the logic of their
original styles; and what previously had Malevich Malevich see Hinton's illustrations ? For the
serviced the open surfaces of their paintings (the Susan Compton's article, 'Malevich and "The question of Khlebnikov's interest in the ideas
`zips', cloud-like rectangles and jagged shapes) Fourth Dimension" ', in the April issue of of Lobachevsky and his discussion of them with
became subjects in their own right. It was left to Studio International, concerns ideas which were the Cubo-Futurists, see Khlebnikov's letters
the modularity of sixties painting and then to of some importance to much of Russian and poetry. Khlebnikov, it seems, was a student
the 'emptiness' of subsequent painterliness to modernism — literature as well as art — and the of A. Vasilev, the man most responsible for
fully establish the genre of an autonomous topic deserves careful critical attention and the great revival of professional and popular
abstract art. This said, however, some of the understanding. Her comparison of Malevich's interest in Lobachevsky at the turn of the
most ambitious of current painting (namely work with Hinton's drawings is useful and century.
Bush's, Dzubas's, Motherwell's, and some suggestive, unfortunately the article as a whole Care should also be taken not to confuse a
others') is that which openly uses figural drawing is marred by a certain lack of system and rigor coincidence of terms with a coincidence of
and depicted shape, containing and using its in the exposition of the central question. Since idea. I refer to the citation of Salmon in
expressive potential now that modularity seems this is not the place to enter upon lengthy Montjoie for the source of the name '0.10', and
more or less exhausted and that the path of all- critical analyses, I hope a few remarks about the the acceptance of Andersen's ill-argued case for
over painterliness seems increasingly to be kinds of problems this article presents will be the influence of Leger's statements on Malevich,
blocked by the very stature of Oltiski's art. helpful to your readers. an argument based on a coincidence of terms,
Indeed, I would go further and suggest that The author is sent on needless conjectural when the terms had been in circulation already
if the achievement of painting's autonomy chases by a deficiency of factual information — for twenty years.
meant an establishment of total all-over often of information not difficult to obtain. There are also several factual inaccuracies.
surface, then this has been, among other things, In order to explain how Malevich saw the Matiushin's essay is not called 'The Sense of
a clearing-away of needless structures — and illustrations in Du Cubisme, for example, it is the Fourth Dimension' but 'An Artist's
anxieties — from the practise of art. Returning to not necessary to imagine him peering over Experience of the New Space' (one might
Impressionism, all-overness has questioned the Matiushin's shoulder — and Matiushin's quarrel only about the translation of the word
whole traditional emphasis on locking obligingly translating the French! A complete `space' here); it is not about the fourth
composition that Cubism had retained from Russian version of Du Cubisme was published in dimension as such, and it was written after the
figurative art, and with it has affirmed painting's a substantial edition in Moscow with all of the Revolution. There was no Black Square in
unique identity in a new way. This has been a illustrations in July of 1913. The translator was `Victory Over the Sun'; there are
revelation and a release. It seems also to have Max Voloshin. Or again, one does not have to Suprematist works with representational
been, in a sense, a remedial act. Painting suppose that Malevich's interest in the fourth elements (although they are drawings, they
surrendered representation of the human dimension must have come exclusively or cannot simply be ignored by Ms Compton for
figure, was forced to forgo such representation, primarily through Matiushin. Perhaps it did. the sake of her arguments). The use of a 1970
for the sake of its continuing existence. It was But the idea of the fourth dimension was just revised English edition of Tertium Organum
also for its own sake that it was forced to forgo as popular in Russia as elsewhere at the time instead of the Russian edition of 1911 creates
traditional composition. The history of (indeed since the 187os); P. D. Uspenskii other problems. Some of the quotations do not
modernism is conveniently told through such published a book on the fourth dimension in exist at all in the early version. (`that man whom
`reductions' — and yet for each abstinence comes 1909. The works of Hinton himself (his first science studies . . .'), others have been
new compensations, new benefits. Post-Pollock name is Charles, not Howard) were discussed substantially altered. A case in point is
modernism has already produced paintings of in the press, and if a case is to be made for Uspenksii's characterization of the 'fourth
outstanding quality. It may well be, however, Hinton's influence in particular, then the stage' (not 'form') of psychic evolution. The
that its full benefits have yet to be gained. Russian translations of Hinton published before `self-consciousness' and 'self-conscious will'
JOHN ELDERFIELD `o. 10' should be mentioned. Where, in fact, did included by Ms Compton are later additions
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