Stoneware Flower Pot c. 1937

Annie B. Johnston made this drawing of a Stoneware Flower Pot, though we don't know exactly when, and it looks like she used watercolor. The colors are really muted, almost monochromatic, like looking at something in the early morning light. What I like about this piece is the way it shows the material quality of the pot. The artist is really attending to the texture, that slightly rough, uneven surface, and you can see where the color gets darker in some of the indentations. I love the way she gets that sense of weight. The way she draws the rim of the pot, how it sort of curves inward, is a nice touch. It makes me think about Morandi’s still life paintings, the way he’s able to make humble, everyday objects feel so monumental and full of feeling. In both artists work, the beauty is in the looking, right? In the simple act of observation.