Axe 1935 - 1942

This little watercolor on paper of an axe was made by Hal Blakeley. Just imagine his hand carefully applying those washes of grey and brown, building up the texture of the aged metal and worn wood. I feel the weight of the object in the density of the colors, yet it almost floats on the page. I wonder, what was Blakeley thinking as he painted? Was he a craftsman himself, familiar with the tool's heft and purpose? Or was he drawn to the axe as a symbol, perhaps of labor, or of the wilderness? He has made an intimate portrait of this object, lingering on the details - the way the light catches on the blade, the worn texture of the handle. Painters have always looked to one another, exchanging ideas across time. Think of Van Gogh's boots, or Courbet's pipes - everyday objects transformed through the act of looking and painting. Painting is a way of thinking, a way of making sense of the world around us, one brushstroke at a time.