Box c. 1937

Majel G. Claflin made this box, painted in watercolor, probably on paper, sometime in the first half of the twentieth century. I’m imagining Claflin sitting and slowly building up the image of this box, which feels humble but has these amazing crenellations around each design. It gives the impression of a fortress. The colours are earthy, like clay, and they sit quietly on the surface. Claflin’s choice of watercolor gives the image a delicate, translucent quality that contrasts beautifully with the solidity of the box. The shapes evoke folk art traditions—a little like the work of Hilma af Klint, perhaps, but more literal. It is a conversation across time, one artist speaking to another through the language of form and colour. It makes you think about how we see and experience the world around us. It’s all open to interpretation, like a good painting should be.