Crock c. 1940

Charlotte Sperber painted this watercolor of a Crock, we don't know when, but likely she used paper and watercolour paint. There's a funny mix of looseness and precision in this painting that I like. The body of the crock is rendered with a kind of cloudy wash that feels soft and approachable. The flower, though, is crisply defined. Look how the leaves are almost like cut paper, so clear in their outlines. I wonder what kind of brush she used, perhaps a fine brush to create the small details around the rim of the pot. It's a humble subject, but painted with such care that it gives the object a kind of quiet dignity, don't you think? It reminds me of some of Morandi’s still lifes, that same attention to simple, everyday forms. In both artists’ work, it’s the act of looking, of attending to the world around you, that really counts.