Pewter Ewer c. 1936

John Dixon made this watercolor of a pewter ewer, sometime in the late 18th or early 19th century, and it's pretty interesting to look at how the artist’s handling the paint. It's so controlled, everything is blended. I like the way Dixon renders the light playing across the surface of this object. See how the color shifts from a cool blue-grey in the shadows to a warmer, almost golden hue where the light catches? It gives the metal a real sense of depth and weight. There’s something meditative about Dixon’s approach. It reminds me of Morandi, who also had a thing for painting everyday objects like bottles and jars. Both artists seem to find a kind of quiet beauty in the mundane, inviting us to slow down and really look at the world around us. It feels very real.