Wooden Cross used as Headstone c. 1937

Majel G. Claflin made this watercolor painting of a wooden cross, probably in the 1930s in Taos, New Mexico. The palette is muted, dominated by earthy browns and greens, but punctuated by these little pops of vibrant orange in the blooms trailing over the cross. The surface is built up through layers of delicate washes, one over the other; it’s like she’s coaxing the image into being. Look at how she’s rendered the wood grain, these subtle striations suggesting the passage of time. Then there are the flowers, they're painted with this almost naive touch, a kind of folksy simplicity. They’re not botanically perfect, but they have this real charm, this handmade feel. You can see the tenderness and care in the way Claflin approaches the subject. This reminds me a little bit of Milton Avery, both are interested in reducing things to their most essential forms. But unlike Avery, Claflin is working in this more representational mode, capturing a specific object in a specific place, trying to catch something of the spirit of the place, and the person it represents.