Jug for Pancake Batter 1935 - 1942

Jessica Price made this 'Jug for Pancake Batter' in watercolor on paper, and what I see is a real tenderness in the way the light falls on the jug. It's not just about depicting an object; it’s about feeling its weight, its history. The color palette is muted, almost monochromatic, but within that limited range, Price finds so much variation. Look at the way the blues around the handle suggest the cool, smooth ceramic, and how they contrast with the warmer tones where the light hits. It reminds me of Morandi, that Italian painter, who could make poetry out of a few dusty bottles. There's a quietness here, a sense of everyday life elevated to something worth contemplating. The soft washes of color make me think about the process of painting itself, the way watercolor allows for a kind of transparency and layering that mirrors the way we build up memories and associations with familiar objects. Art is, at its best, a conversation with the past, a way of seeing old things with new eyes.