Colcha 1935 - 1942

Etna Wiswall made this 'Colcha' out of paint, though I don't know when exactly. The design really zings, doesn't it? Look at the palette – pinks and yellows snuggling up to blues and browns. It's like a garden party with a slightly weird dress code. Wiswall lays down these colors like she's frosting a cake, each stroke deliberate, but also kind of playful, not too worried about staying inside the lines. The paint itself looks smooth, almost flat, like gouache, soaks into the paper giving it a matte finish. I'm drawn to this one little flower, right in the middle – it’s like a tiny explosion of pink and blue, all packed into a compact form. It’s a microcosm of the whole piece, really, a burst of energy contained within a simple shape. This piece reminds me of the work of Hilma af Klint, in how she uses patterns and color to represent the natural world. It is a testament to the power of art to transform everyday objects into something magical.