Wall Clock c. 1938

This "Wall Clock" by Frank Wenger is rendered with what looks like watercolor or gouache, and it’s all about the subtle variations in tone, creating depth and form. The making of a painting is a process of uncovering, not simply illustrating, and Wenger is showing us this so clearly. Check out the wood grain – it's not just brown, it's a whole symphony of reddish-browns, hinting at the organic nature of the material. The clock face itself has these hazy, dreamlike qualities like he’s capturing a moment in time that’s already fading. I find it curious that the artist included a scene within the clock face - a moment captured in time within a measure of time. It is as if the clock is a window into a past moment. Wenger reminds me a little of Charles Burchfield, another artist who found beauty in the everyday. Both artists show us how art isn’t just about grand gestures, it’s about finding something fascinating in the ordinary. Art, like time, keeps moving and surprising us.