Wide Top Jug or Pitcher c. 1940

Carl Buergerniss made this watercolour titled Wide Top Jug or Pitcher, and there’s something lovely about seeing a humble object elevated to the status of art. Look at the way he’s handled the brown glaze, it’s almost sculptural, isn’t it? You can almost feel the texture of the ceramic. The addition of the stag motif is quite charming, reminds me a little of folk art traditions. The detail around the handle gives it a kind of folksy feel, like it’s been lovingly crafted. I wonder if Buergerniss was interested in the craft movement that was popular in the early 20th Century? There’s a softness to the colour palette that gives the piece a dreamlike quality. It's as if the jug is not just an object but a memory, a feeling. The slightly blurred edges and muted tones lend it a gentle, nostalgic air. Perhaps someone like Giorgio Morandi, with his still life paintings of bottles and jars, was an influence? It's a reminder that art can be found in the everyday if we just take the time to look.