Whiskey Bottle c. 1941

Gerald Scalise made this Whiskey Bottle, we don’t know when, but probably with watercolor. Look at the way the bottle is built up with these thin layers of greens and browns, almost like he’s building up the object in layers. I love how the paint kind of bleeds and pools in certain areas, giving the bottle a sense of weight and volume. You can almost feel the slickness of the glass, the way the light catches and reflects on its surface. And the drips! They remind you that it’s just paint on paper, an illusion. The way Scalise has rendered the lettering, slightly wonky and imperfect, makes me think of outsider art like Bill Traylor. Both artists share a kind of raw, unpolished approach that embraces the beauty of imperfection. It reminds us that art is a conversation, always evolving, always finding new ways to see the world.