Pa. German Stamping Blocks for Homespun Cotton or Linens c. 1939

Fritz Boehmer made this lovely study of Pennsylvania German stamping blocks, probably with watercolor on paper. The blocks are simple shapes – a heart, leaves – but it’s the saw-toothed edges that really grab me; that feeling of ‘handmade,’ where you can really feel the tool working the material. I’m drawn to the one on the left, the way the vertical lines curve, and the light models the form. It’s not just a flat shape, it feels like it has volume. And I guess that’s what’s so cool about this as a drawing, too – it’s not just a record, but a translation. Boehmer isn't just showing us the blocks, he's showing us how to see them. This piece puts me in mind of contemporary artists, like Lesley Dill, who explore similar territory of language, process, and the handmade. It's all one big conversation, right? Each artist responding to what came before, and pointing the way to what comes next. And that, to me, is the beauty of art – its endless possibilities, its refusal to be pinned down.