Study for Homage to the Square "High Tenor"

Josef Albers used abstract painting to understand how colors interact in two-dimensional spaces. This rendering of nested squares in shades of yellow and ochre is part of an experimental series of 1960s paintings and prints. Albers minutely documented these investigations in mathematical proportions and color theory, adjusting variables such as the size, number, and color of squares. Like Atta Kwami, his color work reflected cultural observations. While both Albers and past scholars foregrounded his scientific interest in color, new research has revealed the deep influence of the colors and shapes of historic Mexican art and architecture on his self-styled Homages.