Bishop Hill: Woodturning Lathe 1939

This watercolour on paper shows a woodturning lathe, and the image has been brought into being through the hand of H. Langden Brown. I can imagine him sketching out lines in pencil, then coming back over it with delicate brushstrokes of translucent colour. Just look at how the machine itself is made of different sections of carved and planed wood, pieced together with screws. There’s a quietness to the image, in its depiction of a stationary tool awaiting use, but I know that it once spun and vibrated, carving out new shapes in the world. I am reminded of the relationship between art and craft, each informing the other. Brown's interest in representing the beauty of this object makes it a very precious painting. Artists respond to each other across time, each inspiring new ways of seeing, thinking, and feeling.