Twice each year, the Earth pauses in a rare moment of equilibrium. At the vernal equinox, day and night share the same measure of time. Light and darkness meet in perfect balance before the slow tilt toward longer days begins. Across cultures, this moment has long carried symbolic weight. It values transition rather than arrival, a threshold where opposing forces briefly coexist in harmony. It is a day defined by duality: light and shadow, growth and stillness, presence and absence - held in quiet alignment.

Donald Sultan (b. 1951) explores this dialogue between opposites using his signature bold, graphic language. Known for reducing natural motifs to elemental forms and stark contrasts, he transforms familiar imagery into meditations on balance, weight, and perception.

In the works we present today, tulips, long associated with the renewal of spring, become vehicles for this exploration.

The twin sculptures White Tulips and Vase, April 4, 2014 (2014) and Black Tulips and Vase, April 5, 2014 (2014) mirror one another in form yet diverge in tone. One absorbs light; the other reflects it. Together, they suggest a sculptural equilibrium: two presences occupying the same conceptual space.

A similar dialogue unfolds in the silkscreens White Tulips and Vase, Feb 25, 2014 and Black Tulips and Vase, Feb 26, 2014. Here the polarity reverses: the subject and background exchange roles, the image shifting from light emerging out of darkness to darkness emerging from light. What appears at first glance as repetition reveals itself as transformation. The same motif becomes its own inverse.

Like the equinox itself, these works hold a fleeting balance between opposing forces. They remind us that harmony does not erase contrast; it emerges from it.

At this point in the year, when the world turns quietly toward light, Sultan’s tulips offer a meditation on symmetry, perception, and the delicate equilibrium that underlies both nature and art.

If this harmony of opposites resonates with you, we would be delighted to continue the conversation.

Simply reply to this email to enquire, or arrange a call with us to explore further and experience the works firsthand.

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