Pewter Tankard c. 1936

Henry Meyer made this drawing of a Pewter Tankard sometime in the 20th century, using graphite on paper. The surface is so smooth it looks almost like a photograph, but the details reveal the hand of the artist in the variations of tone and texture, like a really great Xerox or an early computer rendering. Look at the handle – how it curves so elegantly, almost like a baroque flourish. It’s so tactile, you can almost feel its weight in your hand. The graphite is applied with such precision, creating this incredibly subtle gradation of light and shadow, giving the tankard a real sense of volume and presence. There’s a real intimacy to the way that the artist renders the object. It makes me think of Vija Celmins, another artist known for her graphite drawings of everyday objects, but there’s a kind of warmth and domesticity to this piece that feels very different. It’s a humble object, but it’s elevated to something really special through the artist’s attention to detail.