Colour Exploration (Study for Horizontal Series) was one of Choy Weng Yang’s early investigation into abstract painting that follows the works and theories of Bauhaus co-founder and American Abstractionist Josef Albers and his influenced circle, including Ad Reinhardt, Paul Klee, and György Kepes. Choy used a variation of brushworks and techniques derived from the use of flat and round brushes for this work. Short, dilute strokes of paint are used together with smooth, thick, controlled strokes to create an illusion of dynamic movement and spontaneity within a calm angular composition made of loose rectangles and squares. Hard edges are deliberately avoided, resulting to a distinctive difference from Albers’ Homage to the Square series and draws closer to Ad Reinhardt’s and Klee’s approach to colour stripes works. He also blended the structure and content of the painting together, a common strategy by Albers himself.Colour Exploration (Study for Horizontal Series) was created shortly after Choy returned home from his six-month UNESCO Fellowship in USA. It encapsulated several aesthetic learnings from the then contemporary American art scene and acts as a prelude to his most recognized series titled Horizontal in 1977.
