Bottle c. 1940

Loraine Makimson made this painting of a bottle sometime during her lifetime, using watercolor on paper. It’s a delicate painting, barely there, really. I imagine Makimson with her brush, layering the washes of blues and greens to build up the form, very patiently working on the curves and edges of the bottle. The paint is so thin it’s almost like looking at the object itself. It’s a painting about transparency. There are these faint decorative details on the bottle, a little like a ghost of another image, which she has rendered with such care. Painters are always in conversation with one another, looking and learning from the past. This painting reminds me of Morandi’s still lifes, simple objects rendered with great attention and love. It’s a quiet, thoughtful painting that invites us to slow down and really see.