Mustard Pot 1935 - 1942

Michael Fenga made this "Mustard Pot," and there's a real tenderness in the way he's rendered it. It's more than just a drawing; it feels like an embrace of the everyday. The rendering itself is quite fascinating. The softness of the graphite lends a gentle quality to the object, emphasizing its form. Look at the way Fenga captures the light reflecting off the glass. Each stroke seems considered. Focus on the cross-hatching around the middle, it gives the pot a tactile quality; you can almost feel the texture of the glass. There’s an element of implied depth here, the way the lines converge and diverge, suggesting not just shape but also the weight of the object. It reminds me a little of Morandi, finding the sublime in the simplest of forms, suggesting that even mundane objects can hold beauty and meaning. It's a humble piece, but it speaks volumes about seeing and appreciating the world around us.