Hunting Trousers c. 1936

Mary E. Humes made this drawing of 'Hunting Trousers' with what seems to be pencil and watercolor on paper. The way the hatching describes the form is pretty interesting. She’s using a simple mark and repeating it a lot, like Agnes Martin, but here it's used to describe a physical object. It’s like she’s building the form out of pure process, kind of like when I build up a painting by layering intuitive marks over and over. The vertical marks create a sense of depth and texture that gives the trousers a kind of worn-in, comfortable feel. Look at the small sketch of the back of the trousers in the upper right corner – it's like she's trying to fully capture the object from multiple angles. The almost abstract rendering of the fabric, with its muted colors and subtle shading, reminds me a bit of Fairfield Porter’s domestic scenes, where everyday objects take on a quiet, contemplative quality. Art’s always talking to itself!