Silver Salt Spoon 1935 - 1942

Frederick Jackson made this drawing of a salt spoon with graphite on paper. Look at that soft, grey scale; the way the light glints off the metal. You can almost feel the coolness of the silver and the powdery grain of the salt. I wonder what Jackson was thinking about when he made this. Was he fascinated by the way light plays on reflective surfaces? Was he interested in the contrast between the solid form of the spoon and the delicate lines that define it? The composition itself is kind of interesting, isn't it? It's like a study, with different views of the spoon arranged on the page. It reminds me of those old botanical drawings, where the artist would dissect a flower and show all its different parts. But here, Jackson is dissecting the idea of a spoon, exploring its form and function from multiple angles. Like a conversation between hand, eye, and object that echoes across time.