Quote by Anne M. G. Wagner, in A House Divided: American Art Since 1955, Univ. of California Press, 14 Feb. 2012, p. 211
“

If what counts most in communication is pattern and its variations, we can look again at the many surfaces and repetitions in Martin's work: in format, medium, mark, measurement. The square itself, as the artist well knew, is the most repetitious of linear lay-outs; each defining dimension repeats the next. That's why she used the square for her basic setup, as well as why she famously credited it with an 'unpleasant' power, which she actively opposed by dividing her canvas into rectangular units.

— Quote by

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "If what counts most in communication is pattern and its variations, we can look again at the many surfaces and repetitions in Martin's work: in format, medium, mark, measurement. The square itself, as the artist well knew, is the most repetitious of linear lay-outs; each defining dimension repeats the next. That's why she used the square for her basic setup, as well as why she famously credited it with an 'unpleasant' power, which she actively opposed by dividing her canvas into rectangular units." in the context of "Quote by Anne M. G. Wagner, in A House Divided: American Art Since 1955, Univ. of California Press, 14 Feb. 2012, p. 211" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "Agnes Martin" (Quotes about Agnes Martin) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Agnes Martin

About Agnes Martin

Agnes Bernice Martin (22 March 1912 – 16 December 2004), born in Canada, was an American abstract painter. Although she is often considered or referred to as a minimalist artist like Robert Ryman, Agnes Martin considered herself an abstract expressionist artist.