Jacket c. 1940

Syrena Swanson's 'Jacket' is a wash and graphite on paper, and look at that blue! Here, Swanson uses a combination of wash and graphite to create a detailed rendering of a jacket and trousers, likely a costume design, maybe even for a matador. The colors are so deliberate, it almost feels like she’s building the garment right there on the page. There’s a real precision at play in her lines— you can almost feel the texture of the fabric and the weight of the embellishments. I can imagine her, bent over the table, carefully applying each stroke, each line, trying to capture the essence of the design. There’s something so satisfying about the way she balances detail with simplicity, leaving just enough unsaid to let our imaginations fill in the rest. It’s a conversation across time and materials, with artists building upon each other’s visions, adding their own unique perspectives to the ongoing dialogue.