Biedermeier Fashion 1908

Urban Janke made this watercolor drawing of Biedermeier Fashion sometime around the turn of the century. It is so small, almost like a playing card, the kind of image that slips easily into your pocket. Look at how the colors are applied, dabbed on with almost no blending, the kind of color that sits on the surface. The dress billows out in bands, each one carefully delineated with tiny flowers, like a carefully tended garden. The whole image has a sense of miniaturization, a world held within the confines of the page. The artist, who died young, was prolific, producing lots of these little watercolors of fashion plates. There's something so beautiful in that, the way he seemed to be endlessly fascinated by the details of clothing, the way a garment can transform a person. For me, it's a reminder that art isn't just about grand statements. Sometimes, it is about paying attention to the small things, the everyday details that make life beautiful, connecting Janke to the kind of careful and intricate focus you see in the work of someone like Agnes Martin.