Clock c. 1938

Frank Wenger made this clock painting, at an unknown time, using watercolor and graphite on paper. The clock has a gentle, aged appearance, with a soft, watercolor wash creating a muted, dreamy atmosphere. Wenger seems to be saying something about time—a record of time—and, in a sense, embalming it. The piece is also about the love of craft, a loving record of something made meticulously over hours. The details like the gold filigree, painted with care, stand out against the faded red of the clock's body. Looking at this clock I see that there are many ways of marking time, not just the telling of it! Wenger’s clock painting is a reminder that every painter is in conversation with the other, across time, each of them trying to say something new about an old subject.