Literature

In her series Sun Targets, three editions of large-scale woodblock reliefs, Polly Apfelbaum explores the possibilities of the foundational color wheel by applying it to a distilled composition. Both Sun Targets and On Target, an edition produced concurrently, feature precise concentric circles overlaid on a square, though in much different scales with Sun Targets being over four times larger.

In these three monumental prints, Apfelbaum’s chromatic experiments occur outside the circle more so than within it. Eleven rings in a selection of tertiary colors orbit a small, central area of yellow with a light-gray circumference. Inked in a flat, even manner and printed on a hydraulic press, these massive interior woodblocks are a constant across the three works. The artist instead altered the background, juxtaposing the vibrant circle against each of the three primary colors—red, blue, and yellow. These changes to the exterior surroundings drastically alter the overall impact of the images, demonstrating how context and relationship can transform our perceptions.

Produced with such foundational configurations and hues, these new prints are resolutely abstract. At the same time, as with so much the artist’s work, they reference an array of sources, both high and low, that invoke endless associations including scientific illustrations of the cosmos as well as bullseyes that are used in many popular sports. They also engage art history—not only conversing in color theory and with the paintings of such figures as Jasper Johns and Kenneth Noland, but also with Apfelbaum’s larger practice; Sun Targets echo Apfelbaum’s rug works that she created in collaboration with weavers in Mexico, as well as the circular motifs that have recurred throughout her career, from her Wallflowers of the early 1990s to her later “fallen paintings” that expand organically in concentric spirals on the floor. The imagery in Sun Targets was derived from her show Waiting for the UFOs at Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. The show featured multiple installations and floor pieces, including three carpets with large targets which would then become the inspiration for this edition.