Rocking Horse c. 1941

Selma Sandler made this “Rocking Horse” with what looks like watercolors, and the image appears both simple and sophisticated. She’s really embraced the properties of her medium! The washes of color are thin, almost transparent, building up the forms of the rocking horse slowly, layer by layer. It feels like a very intuitive process. Look at the way she’s handled the legs, for instance. They’re not just brown, but a whole family of browns, ochres and creams that model the forms and create a sense of depth. There’s something so tender about this image. Maybe it’s the subject matter, a child’s toy, or maybe it’s the way Sandler has approached her task, with a gentle touch and an eye for detail. I’m reminded of the early work of Milton Avery, or maybe even Marsden Hartley, both artists who had a similar interest in folk art and naive subjects. Like their work, this piece makes you think about how a painting can be both a simple representation and a complex web of ideas.