Komposition in Blau mit Violett (Blue Composition with Purple)

Article description

Signed in pencil lower right: Piene 68/69; numbered lower left: 46/100. Edition of 100. A luminous and meditative composition in deep cobalt blue and magenta-violet, characteristic of Piene's central preoccupation with light, energy, and immaterial space. A single teardrop or flame-like form in intense violet-magenta rises from the lower centre of the square blue field, its narrow stem swelling into a rounded, bulbous head from which fine particles of colour disperse upward and outward into the blue ground — dissolving the boundary between form and atmosphere. A subtle circular halo of lighter blue surrounds the central form, amplifying the sense of radiant, upward movement. The spray-dot technique at the upper edges of the form is quintessentially Piene, recalling both his celebrated Rasterbilder (raster paintings) and his lifelong engagement with fire, smoke, and artificial light as artistic media. As co-founder of the ZERO group (Düsseldorf, 1957), Piene sought a new visual language stripped of gestural expression — pure colour, light, and sensation in its place. A fine, vivid impression with colours of full intensity.