Abstraction, Circa 1960’s is one of those small works that reads large. It is evocative of a landscape but could be completely non-objective as well. Some works have a gravitas and solidity of conception and form that make them a great work and this little work has that characteristic. It has a confidence and sharpness to it that defines it from so many other abstractions. Albert was a consummate artist whose talent was really in his being able to beautifully realize whatever his intent was. He moved into abstraction after being solidly academic in nature but once he embraced abstraction, his forms were pure, confident and certain.

Albert Wein was an artist of innate talent. Sculpture was a great focus in his career but it is evident that he could apply his hand to any art form and exhibit a facile mastery of the medium. He had a wonderful ability with line and was a beautiful draftsman. In the 1950s and 1960s Albert produced quite a body of canvases and works on paper, all in the avant-garde abstract manner that prevailed at that time. Whether it was abstract sculpture or abstract painting, Albert’s subject matter and approach was never on the superficial side.

In the 1960’s many of Albert Wein’s paintings moved into pure abstraction. Never to the point that it was abstraction for abstraction sake. There was always imagery and subject matter that he abstracted from. Blue Counterpoint is one of his more mysterious abstractions in that it is less obvious if it is a figural, sculptural or landscape oriented composition. It does have a vertical orientation, depth, movement and mood. The blurred sort of paint application was something many abstractionists experimented with at this time. Applying paint and then removing it creates a sort of luminosity, which is the attraction of this piece.