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Black Ripe

Black Ripe created by Ellsworth Kelly in 1955 is the embodiment of the Minimalism art movement. Standing at an impressive height of nearly five-and-a-half feet tall and five feet wide, this oil on canvas artwork has two major elements. It has a plain background and a main subject of focus, an organic shape. A pentagon, where instead of sharp points and edges, it has rounded out curves and waves. The pentagon is a deep matte black, contrasted against the background, a pearly white. The black shape fills nearly the entire canvas with the exception of the corners and edges. Together, both elements feel cold and uninviting yet oddly hypnotizing. It gives the impression that this organic pentagon is alive, continuously growing until eventually, it will consume the canvas entirely. The stark white of the area only accentuates the looming void that is the black shape.