Lion and Ball Figurine c. 1936

Editor: This is Ella Josephine Sterling's "Lion and Ball Figurine," made around 1936. It appears to be a drawing, perhaps with watercolor and charcoal? It's a very stately, decorative image of a lion. How do you interpret this work from a formalist perspective? Curator: A fine question. Primarily, I am struck by the tension between representation and abstraction in this piece. Observe how the artist uses watercolor to define the lion's form, yet the application is quite loose and evocative. Consider the mane, how it is rendered with a stippled effect. What does that texture evoke? Editor: It’s almost like a pattern, not quite realistic fur. It's like a decorative flourish more than an anatomical study. Curator: Precisely. Now, direct your attention to the lines defining the body. They are soft, almost blurred, yet they successfully communicate volume and weight. Consider the colour palette as well; browns and greens blending in harmonious discord. What feeling do these compositional choices stir in you? Editor: The blurring gives it an otherworldly feel, a dreamlike essence that keeps it from being truly photorealistic. Curator: I concur. Sterling appears to have intentionally destabilized a realistic depiction through manipulation of colour, form and texture, resulting in a fascinating exploration of perception itself. What initially appears as a mere representational study of a figurine opens itself as a rich exploration of form and colour. Editor: That’s a new way of looking at it for me! I appreciate that shift in perspective; now I can better understand it's play with forms and the inherent properties of the materials. Curator: I'm glad to have aided your seeing. The visual structure serves not to replicate reality, but rather to examine its constituent parts.