About This Artwork

A devotee of Neo-Plasticism—the geometric, nonobjective style espoused by Piet Mondrian—Ilya Bolotowsky began to include the diamond shape in his art in 1947. Bolotowsky believed that this unusual means of presentation created a more spacious composition compared to a square canvas of the same size. Grey Diamond contains many principles of Neo-Plasticism: a lack of depth, the elimination of all representational forms, and carefully balanced color. In embracing the movement, Bolotowsky explained, “Nowadays, when paintings torture the retina, when music gradually destroys the eardrum, there must, all the more, be a need for an art that searches for new ways to achieve harmony and equilibrium.”