Side Chair (one of a pair) 1937

This is Ruth Bialostosky's 'Side Chair', a watercolor on paper. When you look at it, you can feel the artist figuring it out as they go, gently building up layers and defining the form of the chair. I wonder what Bialostosky was thinking as she made it. The light feels so considered. The way she's handled the wooden parts with delicate browns and reds, it’s like she is caressing the wood with her brush. She really captures the texture of the woven seat. And the linear details create a sense of depth. There’s a real conversation happening between the materials, and a love of process. It makes me think about how we, as artists, are all in dialogue with each other. Sharing ideas, inspiring creativity across time. The painting here is an embodied expression, inviting us to interpret it in multiple ways. It’s a space of endless looking and thinking.