Arshile Gorky's Agony and Abstract Expressionism

Introduction: Gorky's Agony and Modernist Anxiety

Arshile Gorky's Agony is one of the finest examples of how contemporary art becomes an abstract representation of an artist's innermost beliefs — a reflection of post-modernist anger and anxiety in the face of twentieth-century realities. Looking at his life as an Armenian refugee whose mother died in his arms during the Turkish genocide, Gorky perhaps best embodies the sum of all these feelings, which were eventually translated into an early departure from life: the artist committed suicide in 1948.

As a compelling example of modern art, it is difficult to offer a strictly realistic interpretation of this work. The goal is rather to reveal the inner feelings it awakens in the viewer.

Color and Shape in Arshile Gorky's Agony

The first thing likely to make the viewer wonder is the remarkable way colors are combined into a rainbow of expression. There are several categories of color successfully blended into this work. First, there are the bright colors — numerous shades of red, with occasional intervals of purple and pink.

The second set of colors is far more somber, including the black present in most of the shapes as well as the background maroon, which appears in different shades depending on the section of the canvas. Finally, somewhere in the middle between these two extremes — perhaps as a tentative representation of the balanced way of living the artist never achieved — there are brighter colors, including shades of white.

It is worth noting that the white tones are never truly white anywhere in the picture; they are closer to shades of grey that brighten at certain points. This might be interpreted as the artist's lifelong struggle and his inability to find happiness in any form other than these fleeting gradations of light. The title does a great deal to explain the painting's inner meanings as well.

The shapes are equally striking. Most are well defined, and their diversity — a testament to the artist's remarkable imagination — is overwhelming. At times, one can almost perceive these shapes forming into recognizable figures. For example, the shapes on the left could combine to suggest a vague human figure, with a right foot more clearly visible in the foreground. Yet this is not the painting's primary aim: it simply translates the artist's imagination into shapes and colors.

Philip Guston's Untitled (Waiting)

A similar modernist anguish can be seen in Philip Guston's Untitled (Waiting). Here again, we encounter the same strange palette, with the exception that the shades are far more distinctly grey and shadowy. There is no bright nuance, despite the presence of some nominally bright colors. Red and pink do appear in the painting, but they lean heavily toward shadow and grey rather than toward the vivid red Gorky employed.

It is difficult to interpret the symbols of modern art in any painting, and this work is no exception. The goal is not to uncover fixed meanings but to identify what these symbols awaken in the viewer. In this case — and the title may serve as a useful starting point for modern art interpretation — the central symbol may be a rock, which would signal the atemporal perspective the artist adopts.

If we think of a rock as a symbol of time in its immeasurable dimension — an element present almost since the dawn of existence and likely to remain long after all life on Earth has vanished — the shape resolves itself into simply a rock waiting in its own realm for nothing in particular to happen. It is interesting to note, however, that the shape is not perfectly straight; it does not take the form one might expect of an actual rock. In its apparent firmness and immovability, it has been subtly altered, which may suggest that even rocks can be modified and changed, and that nothing is truly eternal or fixed.

Conclusion: Abstract Art as Inner Expression

The five works of art come together to illuminate an important characteristic of modern, abstract art: the artist's sustained commitment to pure exercises of imagination. Under the weight of twentieth-century uncertainties and anguish, these artists find refuge in their work and uncover inner dimensions of their personalities that might otherwise never have surfaced. There is no need to seek fixed interpretations; it is enough to experience the colors, shapes, and attitudes that seem to emerge from anywhere, offering simple aesthetic pleasure.

The central painting of reference, Gorky's Agony, is instructive in this sense — its title providing the initial clue to the artist's motivating impulse. From there, Gorky appears to press forward entirely, achieving an inner expression of his artistic conscience and translating it, partially, into shapes and colors, lines and shades.