Wooden Cabinet for Music c. 1938

Rose Campbell-Gerke made this drawing of a 'Wooden Cabinet for Music' at an unknown date with what looks like colored pencil. It's a quirky, quiet, and intimate affair, isn't it? I can imagine Campbell-Gerke studying this cabinet, really looking at it, maybe even touching it, trying to figure out how to translate its three-dimensional form into two dimensions. It's like she's thinking, "How do I capture the woodiness of the wood, the boxiness of the box?" I love the way she's used these soft greens and reddish hues, it almost looks like she's blushing while she's drawing. And the lines, they're not perfect, they waver and wiggle a bit, which gives the whole thing this lovely, human feel. It reminds me a bit of some of the folk art I've seen. There's a real sense of care and attention, like she’s not just copying what she sees, but really trying to understand it. And in a funny way, that’s what we all do when we look at art, isn't it? We're not just seeing something, we're trying to understand it, connect with it, and maybe even blush a little ourselves.