Pa. German Pitcher c. 1937

Yolande Delasser made this watercolor, "Pa. German Pitcher," and right away you can see how the brown and gold palette creates a kind of warm, rustic feel. Looking at the body of the pitcher, I see how the darker brown watercolor wash at the base gives way to a lighter, warmer tone above, almost like the pitcher is glowing from within. I like the little gold dots along the rim that look like nail heads holding the pitcher together. The lines meander and pause, thick and thin, as though the artist is feeling her way around the form. It's not exactly precise, but it has this really nice, hand-made quality, and I feel like I could hold this thing. The pitcher feels like a conversation between the artist and the object. This reminds me a little bit of the folk art that was appreciated by the artist Marsden Hartley. Like him, Delasser seems less interested in perfection and more interested in the direct, almost childlike expression.