Fractur 1935 - 1942

Elmer Kottcamp made this Fractur piece, a watercolour on paper, sometime between 1891 and 1971. It's all about process, you know? Letting the hand do the work. Look at the texture here, the way the colors bleed into each other, that handmade paper. The ink and watercolour are so delicate. See how the red and blue dance around those floral shapes? They aren’t shouting, they're whispering. I love that the whole thing feels fragile. The writing feels like it’s about to crumble, but it's also carefully rendered, with a real attention to detail in each letter, each flourish. It reminds me of the work of Paul Klee, with that same sense of whimsy. They both create these little worlds, full of simple shapes and colors, but charged with emotion. It’s art that doesn’t take itself too seriously, and that’s always a good thing in my book.