Puppet - "Simon Legree" c. 1939

Hilda Olson made this watercolour, ‘Puppet - "Simon Legree"’, at an unknown date. Olson's application of watercolour is thin, almost transparent, allowing the paper's texture to peek through, creating a sense of delicate fragility that belies the character's sinister name. Look closely at the plaid of his trousers, how each square is built with tiny strokes, a sort of pointillist approach to pattern. The artist is really relishing the making, the tiny repetitions and subtle shifts in tone. The hanging threads are rendered with stark, unwavering lines, creating a cage around the figure, which is quite disturbing. This is so different from the work of someone like Philip Guston. Where he uses crude, bold marks and thick layers to convey emotional angst, Olson’s approach is more controlled, almost innocent. Yet, both artists are using their medium to explore the darker aspects of human nature and art is a constant dialogue of this sort, isn't it? Where meanings are ambiguous and ever shifting.