Watch Case 1935 - 1942

Thomas Watts made this watch case sketch with watercolor and graphite. It has this cool color palette of leafy greens and mustard yellows, framed by a vivid coral, like the colors you'd see in an old Italian fresco. I can imagine Thomas sketching it out, maybe thinking about how the colors would pop against the wood, really bringing the watch case to life. The surface seems pretty smooth, almost like he wanted to give the craftsman a clear idea without getting bogged down in texture. The whimsical foliage design at the front is so expressive—you can almost feel the rhythm of his hand as he laid down each brushstroke. It reminds me of some of the decorative patterns you see in folk art, simple but full of life and energy. Artists are always borrowing and reinventing; it’s a never-ending conversation across time. Painting, like any art form, thrives on that kind of exchange, embracing ambiguity and letting new meanings emerge.