White Paint and "Marble"

Twombly was no doubt aware of French symbolist Stéphane Mallarmé's 1885 poem "The Swan," with its emphasis on wintry whiteness. He wrote of his own work in 1957: "Whiteness can be the classic state of the intellect, or a neo-romantic area of remembrance--or as the symbolic whiteness of Mallarmé." Certainly the swan's pallor appealed to Twombly, who had shrouded his sculptures in white paint since 1948. This veil of paint casts a stillness over the works, lending the sculptures a spectral air. Yet Twombly's whiteness is not pure. The hues in these works range from stark to yellowing, and their surfaces exhibit a patina of wear and age.

Beyond the wide spectrum of white, intense color does occasionally appear in Twombly's work. A bright aquamarine blue is revealed beneath the forms that rise from Anadyomene of 1981 (above); traces of a darker blue and lettering mark its surface. The title refers to Aphrodite Anadyomene, the goddess born of sea foam who is traditionally depicted emerging from the waters. This work conjures the Mediterranean--the brightness of the sea and sky, the whiteness of the marble--and its architectural structure is reminiscent of a temple dedicated to the goddess.

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