Pots at Market c. 1938

Emilio Amero’s photograph captures a moment of quiet industry and the elemental beauty of handmade objects. I can almost feel the cool, damp clay yielding beneath Amero’s fingers as he coaxes these pots into existence. The sepia tones evoke a sense of timelessness, as though these vessels have emerged from the earth itself. I think he would have been interested in the way the light catches the curves of the pots, emphasizing their simple, utilitarian forms and the slight marks and imperfections. Maybe he was thinking of the potter, and what they might be thinking when they make them? These pots remind me of Agnes Martin’s grid paintings – a similar sense of restraint and understated beauty. There’s a quiet power in the repetition and subtle variation. Like all artists, Amero is in conversation with those who came before, building upon their ideas and techniques to create something new. His photograph invites us to slow down, to appreciate the beauty of simple forms, and to consider the hands that shaped them.