Wall Painting and Baptismal Niche c. 1938

Frank C. Barks created this watercolor painting called Wall Painting and Baptismal Niche sometime in the 20th century. The piece presents as a study in architectural rendering, but what really grabs me are the small details and how Barks made it all. The colors are pretty straightforward, but there's a deliberate quality to the way he's laid them down, thin washes that don't try to hide the paper underneath. The brickwork, for example, is this amazing grid of pale orange and cream, really making the two-point perspective pop. And then you have this baptismal niche, rendered in the grayest of grays, really setting off the flatness of the surrounding wall. It reminds me a little bit of early Agnes Martin, especially in the way that she uses the grid as a way to build a formal structure while also opening a space for play. I love that.