Shaker Kerchief c. 1941

Charles Goodwin made this watercolor and graphite painting of a "Shaker Kerchief" at an unknown date. It’s blue and white, a simple grid. But oh, the tenderness in how it’s rendered! I imagine Goodwin hunched over this cloth, eyes squinting, trying to capture its quiet geometry. Did he pause, wondering about the hands that once folded it, the faces it might have dabbed? I wonder if he felt a connection to the past. The slight imperfections in the weave, those gentle smudges of blue—they’re like whispers of human touch. Goodwin wasn't just painting a kerchief; he was capturing a moment, a feeling. It reminds me a little of Agnes Martin’s grids, but more domestic, more intimate. It's about finding beauty in the everyday, in the functional, turning it into something meditative. Painting is never just about the thing; it's about the exchange, a little nod across time.