Pewter Tankard c. 1936

John Dixon made this 'Pewter Tankard' with watercolor on paper at an unknown date. I can imagine Dixon carefully layering washes of grey and blue, building up the illusion of light reflecting off the metal surface. The brushstrokes are so delicate, especially around the handle. He's not just copying what he sees but really thinking about how light creates form. I wonder what the space was like where Dixon made this. Was he trying to capture a sense of history, or was it just a practice in observation? Painters are always in conversation with each other, across time. Dixon is clearly looking at earlier still life traditions, but he brings his own sensibility to it. It’s funny how a simple object, like this tankard, can hold so much. It’s a container for liquid, for sure, but also for light, color, and feeling. And in this case, for the artist's curiosity.