Candleholder (Candelero) Cut Tin 1940

This cut tin candleholder was made by Hal Blakeley, probably sometime in the mid-twentieth century. The marks are light and airy, not trying too hard, just enough to give you the sense of something handmade. What strikes me is the texture, or rather, the illusion of texture. Look closely at the way Blakeley renders the metal: thin washes, carefully built up, giving the impression of cool, smooth surfaces, punctuated by tiny rivets. Each of these marks is so precise, yet there’s a kind of freedom in their placement, a dance between order and chaos. My eye keeps going back to the central rosette with its little cross: this is where everything seems to come together, all those smaller details working towards this focal point. Thinking about other artists, it brings Eva Hesse to mind, someone who also found beauty in humble materials, transforming the mundane into something transcendent. But while Hesse went big, Blakeley stays small, intimate, reminding us that art doesn’t always need to shout to be heard.