Monk's Chair 1939

Curator: Standing before us is "Monk's Chair," a pencil drawing on paper created by Ursula Lauderdale in 1939. What springs to mind for you looking at this work? Editor: It’s… serene. But also austere. The monochrome lends it a sense of quiet contemplation, almost melancholy. You can almost hear the silence of a solitary chamber. Curator: It’s fascinating how a simple, functional object can evoke such an atmosphere. Lauderdale’s realist style brings an everyday object into sharp focus, stripping it down to its bare essence. The precision of the pencil work really emphasizes the wood’s grain and texture. Editor: Indeed. Notice how the light and shadow play across the form. Lauderdale masterfully uses the pencil to create depth and volume. The composition draws the eye upward from the base to the symbol carved into the chair’s back—an evocative, geometric motif, reminiscent of Celtic crosses, but rendered here with a peculiar angularity. Curator: Absolutely. I can’t help but wonder if Lauderdale intended that shape to hint at a higher spiritual purpose, that stark cross form. The chair becomes not just furniture, but a symbol, doesn’t it? I can almost feel the weight of its history. Editor: I see that, but it also suggests constraints. Its design is minimalist almost to the point of discomfort. Is it a celebration of simple piety, or a stark reminder of limitation and a life constrained by a higher power? Curator: What is it that compels her to select this simple object? Was it for its unadorned character and sturdy architecture? There's an intriguing tension here between what’s represented and how it's represented that really adds layers to our interpretation of the piece. Editor: Precisely. And it's a tension I find incredibly thought-provoking, leading the eye ever upward toward that emblem atop the sturdy and quietly foreboding chair. Curator: It leaves me pondering on the stories such a chair might have witnessed, and perhaps what sits quietly beneath the surface. Editor: And for me, it is a chance to see more by observing what this artwork wants to show me and tell.