Chair 1935 - 1942

Here’s a chair, drawn with pen on paper by an anonymous artist. It’s a side chair, mahogany, so they tell us. The drawing is rendered in a singular, reddish-brown hue, a colour which evokes the warmth of the wood it represents. What strikes me most is the precision of line, the exactness with which each element is delineated. Look at the meticulous measurements noted throughout the composition. Every angle, every curve, seems carefully considered. But within this exactitude, there's a real elegance, a lyricism even, in the gentle arc of the chair's back, in the delicate rendering of its details. There’s something so intimate and human about the hand-drawn line, it reveals the artist’s touch, their careful observation, it makes me think of Agnes Martin’s grids. Here, the artist embraces the subtle imperfections and variations that arise from the act of drawing. It’s not just a representation of a chair, it’s a testament to the beauty and the labor of craftsmanship.