Homage to the Square

This was my first visit to the Hirshorn Museum and Sculpture Garden so I did not really know what to expect to see when I arrived. Before I visited the museum, someone mentioned in class that the only exhibition that they did not personally like at the museum was the one titled, “Homage to the Square.” So when I arrived at the museum this was the first artwork that I went looking for, as I wanted to see if I would get a similar reaction to what my classmate experienced. At first I had a very similar reaction, as I was almost bored when I first set my eyes on the large amounts of squares that surrounded me. But my thoughts changed when I took another look at the squares and really studied each piece both individually and as a whole collection. His work really stands out to anyone passing by due to the bright colors that catch your eye and capture your attention. Also due to the large amount of paintings you can’t help but notice as there are so many of them all around you. I did some research online and it said that this work by Josef Albers is his most well known and that, “these images create optical illusions, and challenge viewers’ visual acuity.” I really enjoyed how this artist was able to take such a simple concept and turn it into a beautiful and visually interesting piece. One would not normally think of different colored squares as art, but he really challenges his viewers to look at art with a more open mind and se it through a new pair of eyes.