Carres
- Artist: Carmelo Arden Quin
- Date: 1951
- Medium: Lacquer on wood
- Dimensions: unconfirmed: 870 x 900 mm
- Museum: Tate Modern
- Collection record: Tate Modern website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is the “Carres” by Carmelo Arden Quin. It was created in 1951 and set on a slab of wood finished with lacquer, giving the surface a bright, almost glass‑like sheen. The piece is a pure abstraction: a grid of interlocking squares and rectangles, each shaded with bold, saturated colors that pop off the glossy background. The effect is rhythmic, almost musical, with the geometry drawing the eye in repeating patterns that seem to move and vibrate. Quin, an Argentine‑born artist who spent much of his career in Spain, was known for his love of shape and color as building blocks. In “Carres” he strips away narrative and lets form and hue speak for themselves. The work sits in the “Abstraction and Society” collection, an exhibition that celebrates how abstract art has reflected and shaped social ideas. It’s a great example of how a simple shape, when treated with such vibrancy, can become a vibrant dialogue between viewer and canvas.
See it in person
Carres is in the collection of Tate Modern on Bankside, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
