Letter: Kenneth Noland obituary

Anthony Caro writes: Kenneth Noland ( obituary, 9 January ) was undoubtedly one of the great masters of 20th-century art. He took his lead from the all-over paintings of Pollock, and instead found the centre of the square canvas. This leap gave birth in the 1960s to his series of circle paintings. Within this simple format, he invested each work, some as large as 6ft x 6ft, with radiant, original colour. These works he followed by opening out the painting by means of the chevron, and later still, he ­introduced drawing in an entirely new way by shaping the canvas itself. He was the most intelligent ­artist I have ever met. He brought such a breadth to his work as to make the viewer gasp. His talk was without any pretension, devoid of "art speak". The years I spent in Vermont in the company of Ken Noland and Jules Olitski were the most stimulating of my career. He loved the company of artists. Modest and ­self-deprecating, he had an infectious sense of humour and fun; he was a pleasure to be with. At the present moment his work does not receive the attention it deserves. Nevertheless his ravishing, classical paintings lift the spirit and will eventually be acclaimed again. He will surely be recognised as the key central figure of post-abstract-expressionist painting.