Quilt Pattern 1935 - 1942

Alois E. Ulrich made this watercolor drawing on paper, "Quilt Pattern," at an unknown date. Looking at the piece, I get the sense that Ulrich was really thinking through the quilt-making process itself. I love how the texture of the quilt is rendered, with these delicate cross-hatching marks, mimicking the woven texture of fabric. The red flowers, set against the textured white square, pop with a delicate vibrancy, their petals formed with tiny, deliberate strokes. The stems and leaves, rendered in various shades of green, look supple and alive. The lines are soft, but there is a surprising amount of detail. You can see the artist building up the image, layer by layer. It reminds me a bit of the work of Forrest Bess, another artist interested in unconventional forms and visionary imagery. In both cases, there’s a sense of exploring inner worlds through a deliberate, handmade process. It shows us that art can be as much about the journey as the destination.