Compote c. 1941

Joseph Mitry made this "Compote" drawing on paper, and I'm immediately drawn to how he's captured light playing on glass. Mitry uses a soft, almost hesitant touch, layering graphite and subtle washes to build up the form. Look closely at the way he renders the curves of the bowl; it’s all about suggestion rather than precise definition, so the reflections and refractions feel real. The drawing has a hazy quality; the glass doesn’t seem so much solid as almost mirage-like, shimmering into view. I like how you can sense him working out the form as he goes, as if the act of drawing is a process of discovery. This reminds me a little of Giorgio Morandi’s still-life paintings, but with a ghostly twist. Like Morandi, Mitry finds endless fascination in humble, everyday objects. Art, you see, is not about fixed answers but about embracing uncertainty and endless possibilities.