Baby's Nightgown c. 1937

Maud M. Holme made this watercolor of a baby's nightgown, and it’s not just a depiction, but almost a tender embrace of the everyday. The light washes of color—mostly off-whites and gentle reds—give the whole piece an airy, dreamlike quality. Holme isn’t trying to hide the process. You can see the delicate build-up of layers, how the colors bleed softly into each other. Each tiny mark is like a whisper. I'm drawn to the way the red trim frames the gown; it creates this gentle structure, but the colors are soft enough to imply use, wear, life. Looking at this piece, I’m reminded a little of Agnes Martin, in the sense of that embrace of the subtle, of the kind of quiet, repetitive mark-making that invites contemplation. It’s about finding the extraordinary in the ordinary, and I think that's a lovely thing.