Lowboy c. 1939

This watercolor painting of a Lowboy table was made by Frank Wenger, sometime between 1855 and 1995. Imagine him, carefully plotting the design of this table with pencil, before beginning to mix the colors on his palette, the subtle browns and blacks and creams of the wood. I wonder what he was thinking as he painted those detailed legs, each one tapering perfectly, each tiny drawer pull catching the light? Was he thinking about light and shadow? The way the eye travels along the edge of a shape? I love the surface quality here, the way the paint sits on the paper. It's delicate, almost translucent. Wenger wasn't just painting a piece of furniture; he was thinking about design and form. It reminds me a little bit of some of the work by the American precisionists, who also depicted industrial and architectural forms with a similar eye for detail and clarity. It’s all a conversation, an artist responding to the world through what they see, feel, and make.