Tumbler c. 1937

John Dana made this drawing of a tumbler, we don't know when or with what exactly, but it looks like pencil on paper. What's amazing is how much information is conveyed with so few marks. Look at the simple cross hatching, and the way it manages to give us the feeling of a heavy glass, the kind you might use for whiskey. The material handling is simple but not naive, the process of making is visible, with layers of lines and soft shadows. The drawing is not overly laboured, but it's also not tossed off. The base is especially lovely, where tiny vertical lines create a firm foundation for the vessel above. The tonal range of the whole thing is extremely subtle, but it really sings. It reminds me a little of Giorgio Morandi, but looser, more whimsical. It’s less about perfection and more about the joy of looking and mark making. There's a generosity in the way he shares his thinking with us.