Pierre Soulages began exploring contrasts of light and dark through the use of walnut stain in the late 1940s. During the 1970s, his work developed into compositions consisting of multiple panels, as seen in the present work, and by 1979 he arrived at what he called Outrenoir (“beyond black”), a body of work centered on the expressive potential of black.
For Soulages, black was not the absence of light but a surface capable of reflecting and generating light. He described this phenomenon as Outrenoir, emphasizing that his works are created through the interaction of form, color, texture, transparency, and opacity, none of which can be understood independently. As a result, every aspect of the work—the tools, materials, support, paint mixture, and even the scale of the composition—became significant, and he occasionally designed and made his own tools. Smooth black surfaces spread with a knife reflect light differently from finely striated surfaces made with a brush, producing a wide range of visual effects within the color black itself. The appearance of the work also changes according to the viewer’s position and the surrounding light conditions.
The title Painting, 7 January 1983, consisting solely of the date of its creation, is equally significant. Whereas paintings are often interpreted through descriptive titles, Soulages avoided directing viewers toward a particular meaning. By assigning only a date, he presented the work as a physical object rather than a narrative or symbolic image, emphasizing its material presence.
Soulages also regarded painting not merely as a flat surface but as a three-dimensional object with depth and physicality. At the 1984 Soulages exhibition held at the Seibu Museum of Art, some works were suspended between the floor and ceiling with cables rather than hung on walls. In this way, the paintings were treated as objects possessing front and back surfaces as well as thickness, while simultaneously functioning as architectural elements that divided and reshaped the exhibition space.
What mattered most to Soulages was the phenomenon created through the interaction of light and material. Yet the work is only fully realized when a viewer encounters it, perceives it, and discovers meaning within it. In this sense, the painting exists not simply as an object, but as an experience continually brought into being through the act of seeing.