Theory #2

Exploring the language of Minimal and Conceptual art from a personal point of view, Lawrence addresses logic, memory, and influence, as well as the subtle permutations of text, code, writing, and drawing. In these first two of a nine-drawing series, she employed the restrained gestures, muted color scheme, and process-oriented approach of most Conceptual art. But these apparent abstractions are loaded with subliminal autobiographical content: the marks began as tentative notations in the artist’s third-grade music notebook, and the colors and humble materials are both personally relevant and point to aspects of African American culture. By tracing, copying, and further abstracting her youthful exercises, Lawrence has conveyed expanse and perspective, both as literal devices and as a metaphor for adulthood.