Wagon Maker's Chisel c. 1942

Here's William Frank's watercolor of a Wagon Maker's Chisel, and it's hitting me right in the gut. I can imagine Frank hunched over his paper, mixing watery browns and greys to capture the worn wood and weathered steel, the realness of this tool. It's like he's thinking about the grip on that handle, the force it takes to make a wagon, and the way labor shapes our lives. That grainy texture on the handle gets me thinking about the artist's hand and the hand of the craftsman. It's a conversation between makers across time. Frank and the wagon maker probably never met, but here they are, in a silent, painterly dialogue.