Flask c. 1936

This is Charles Caseau’s watercolor of a flask, about 11 inches high. I think that the quiet, muted tones of brown, blue, and red, alongside the illustration’s dedication to proportion and exactitude, give the work a feeling of calm, like a silent meditation. I imagine Caseau bent over his desk, carefully rendering each curve and shadow of the flask. Did he feel reverence for the object, or was it a task? I wonder if he was thinking of the flasks that came before, or was he only focused on the flask in front of him? It reminds me of other painters like Giorgio Morandi who, through repetition and subtle variation, find endless possibilities in the simplest of forms. Each brushstroke feels deliberate, almost reverential, contributing to a larger conversation about seeing and being. There’s something about the painting that suggests a connection to the past and a hope for the future.