Toy Birds 1939

Editor: So, this is Frank Budash’s "Toy Birds," made in 1939, using watercolor, charcoal, and pencil on paper. What strikes me is the stillness and the simplicity. The wood grain is lovely but they do feel very frozen. What do you see when you look at it? Curator: Immediately, I’m drawn to the artist's manipulation of line and form. Note how the linear quality of the drawing defines the birds' shape and gives a certain structural integrity. The planes that define the body seem quite angular in contrast with the head of the bird, which curves elegantly. Observe how color isn't used naturalistically but instead functions to highlight the forms. Editor: You mean, it’s not about the realism of the birds but more about how he is constructing the image itself? Curator: Precisely. Look at the surface treatment, the way he handles the medium – see the layering of watercolor, almost like a wash, contrasting with sharper, more defined pencil lines. The very deliberate mark-making suggests a concern with process over replication. Editor: That makes sense. The hatching on the little wood blocks they are standing on… there’s something so calculated about it. Curator: Yes, and consider the relationship between the two birds. They are presented almost as formal studies of slight variations within a theme, each balanced within the composition to draw attention to form, medium and technique. It could be argued that the relationship between these birds as objects and their forms becomes as important to understanding the art as, say, avian symbolism would. Editor: I see what you mean. Thanks! I came in thinking it was charming folk art but there's something much more considered going on. Curator: Indeed, appreciating it requires moving beyond the subject matter to address the artistry in the rendering itself.