Pa. German Dower Chest c. 1938

Bernard Krieger made this watercolour painting of a Pa. German Dower Chest. It’s all about simple shapes and how they come together, like building blocks of visual delight. Look at how the texture of the wood is rendered. See how the artist uses thin washes of brown and reddish-brown to build up the form, layer by layer, like glazing a ceramic. It's about the joy of seeing how colors bleed into each other, creating unexpected harmonies and subtle shifts in tone. Notice the way the light catches on the edges, how the shadows define the form. And those little details in the painted panels on the front, rendered in gentle blues and yellows, what an odd and charming sensibility. This reminds me a little of Marsden Hartley's folk art renderings, he was also into the beauty of everyday objects. What do you think? It's like they're reminding us that art doesn't always have to be serious, it can be playful and fun too.