Richard Misrach
Hawaii IV, from the portfolio Hawai1978, printed 1980
dye transfer print
15 1/8 x 18 1/8 in.
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Joshua P. Smith
Using artificial lighting at night and a large presentational format enabled Misrach to show abstract random patterns created by vegetation. Rather than define a particular place, he fills this frame with complex forms and distorts the color balance to create a curious kind of chaotic impact. Misrach reveals a different side of nature, one in which complexity, density, and impenetrability are virtues.
