Vert-noir-vert, 1965

Private Collection, Toronto

Between 1965 and 1969, McEwen experimented with hard-edge abstraction and acrylic paints, moving away from his practice of layered oil paints. Prevalent in the New York art scene, hard-edge abstraction was also picked up in Montreal with non-figurative painters as many of the artists either had gallery representation or cross-over with their American counterparts. With a decidedly more graphic style, McEwen employed this technique in “Vert-noir-vert”. A solid vertical strip of black occupies the centre of the canvas, flanked by a thin stripe of hot pink on each side. Bands of green with flecks of yellow pigment on the right and left sides suggest a sense of depth, in stark contrast to the central black panel. Often using a solid vertical rectangular strip to divide the composition, the contrast between the abstract background of colour interrupted by an uneven layer of black and the flattened dividing form explores the limitations of depth created by both form and colour. Devoted to exploring the power of colour, tones and texture and the sensation that colour can create, McEwen delivers works in keeping with period experimentation while maintaining his true core artistic purpose. The inscription on the reverse of “Vert-noir-vert” references lines from a 1857 poem by Charles Baudelaire, the Latin title “Moesta et Errabunda” translating to “Grieving and Wandering”.