Pitcher c. 1936

John Dana's 'Pitcher' looks like it was carefully rendered with watercolor to capture its transparency. When I look at this, I imagine Dana thinking a lot about what it means to see through something. The softness of the gray and green washes gives the pitcher a fragile, ephemeral quality. It's a tricky thing to paint well, and I can see the artist has really wrestled with the challenge of light, shadow, and reflection. The handle looks like a nice swoosh! The delicate washes remind me of the work of other artists, especially the way they used light and shadow to create form. It's like Dana is in conversation with them, asking similar questions about seeing and representation. Ultimately, I think this painting is about the beauty of observation, inviting us to slow down and contemplate the subtle visual nuances of the everyday.