A firework of radiant colors – an association that this expressive sheet could possibly evoke in the viewer. In "Tokyo Red Ball" Sam Francis stages a performance of exuberant dynamics and eccentric luminosity. The Californian native developed his unique pictorial language from the late 1940s, inspired by, among others, the groundbreaking paintings of Marc Rothko. The concentric, partly transparent circular shapes that seem to float above the surface are just as much part of his expressive repertoire as another trend-setting feature of his work: the white, unpainted background became a central element of his works in the mid-1950s. Despite the absence of pictorial features such darkness, Francis succeeds in giving the colors an intensive glow like in works such as Tokyo Red Ball. In contrast, the combination of dynamic circular shapes, linear elements and accentuated drippings, supports the aforementioned association. The title of the work also reveals the artist's connection to Japan and its culture. From the late 1950s, the representative of Abstract Expressionism, who called many places around the globe his home, spent a particularly long time in Tokyo, where our work was created in 1962. In the artist's unique, seemingly lyrical oeuvre, "Tokyo Red Ball" combines central aspects of his creative exploration executed with a powerful brilliance. [AM]