An interior of old Armenian house 1942

Mariam Aslamazian made this small watercolor called "An interior of old Armenian house", and it's just a beautiful example of how much feeling you can get from a limited palette. The colors are muted, almost monochromatic, mostly grays and browns, but somehow they evoke a real sense of light and shadow in the room. Look at the way she's captured the texture of the walls and the fabrics with just a few simple washes, you get this feeling for the lived-in-ness of the place. There’s a kind of humility in Aslamazian's approach, a willingness to let the materials speak for themselves. The lines are soft and blurred, creating a dreamlike effect. I'm reminded of Fairfield Porter, with his own quiet domestic scenes. Both artists seem to understand that art isn’t about capturing reality perfectly, but about capturing the feeling of being alive. It’s this kind of openness that makes art so endlessly fascinating. There's never just one right answer, just endless possibilities for seeing and feeling.