This small-scale sketch is a minimalist compositional sketch that explores perceptual ambiguity through geometric division and tonal modulation. It is expressive of my interest in how the brain processes visual stimuli. On this piece four triangular sections converge toward an off-center point creating a dynamic tension between symmetry and depth. The resulting percept is a folded illusion that evokes origami, architectural drafting, and geometrical syntax. At first glance some people see the lines going inward, while others perceive an outward projection. Longer engagement will result in seeing both possibilities.
The image’s ambiguity—flat yet seemingly dimensional—echoes historical explorations of perception, from Renaissance perspectival grids to the optical experiments of Bauhaus artists like Josef Albers. There are also allusions to the visual language of Constructivism, Paul Klee; Sol LeWitt, the mathematical elegance of Islamic tilework, and the kinds of tiling patterns that have fascinated many artists and visual theorists for as long as artists have created and others have speculated.
My interest in visual cognition informs the work’s subtle play between flatness and depth. Displaying the composition as a diamond rather than horizontal or vertical serves to invite viewers to reconsider how we shape perception and the role of shape in this shaping process.
By extension, this small work offers insight into my process, which combines visualization (contemplative engagement) with the tactile making of art. Its modest scale invites close looking, which in turn rewards viewers with a quiet choreography of line, light, and conceptual depth.
This sketch was expanded into a series and eventually several sketches and Counterpoint paintings were completed.
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Amy Ione
Title: Sketch for Counterpoint #1
Date: 2025
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 4x4x1 inches (unframed)
Unsigned:
Catalog Number: 35672