Settee-Sofa c. 1937

Edna C. Rex made this watercolor drawing of a "Settee-Sofa," with a muted palette of browns and tans, and a real dedication to detail. The repeating diamond pattern on the back looks meticulous, almost obsessive, but I think that's the point. Art-making can be like that: a real process of getting lost in the doing. The texture here is fascinating. Rex uses thin washes of color, letting the paper peek through, creating a subtle shimmer. Look at the little legs of the sofa, they’re almost dissolving into the background. And those tiny floral details! They aren't quite photorealistic, but they suggest a real, lived-in object, like a memory. You can almost feel the velvet, even though it's just paint on paper. I keep thinking about Fairfield Porter, another painter who loved the everyday, and found the extraordinary in the ordinary. Ultimately, Rex reminds us that art isn't always about grand gestures or big statements, but about the quiet act of observation, and the joy of putting one color next to another.