Mr. Stewart's House 1935 - 1942

Curator: Here we have Gladys Cook’s "Mr. Stewart’s House," dating from 1935 to 1942. It's a delightful watercolor and colored pencil drawing, very much in the plein-air style, giving us a real sense of place. Editor: It evokes a very peaceful stillness, doesn't it? The slightly muted palette softens the lines of the house and garden. Those puffy, almost cartoonish trees dominate the view, framing the scene like welcoming arms. There’s an odd tension created by their unnatural forms shielding the house. Curator: They almost form an emblematic representation of shelter, don't they? Notice how the architecture speaks of a certain middle-class aspiration of the period, the railings on the porch with the decorative motif, the manicured garden; yet, there’s something slightly melancholy about it. It suggests, to me at least, the quiet solitude of suburban life. Editor: The chimney on top seems like an absurd anachronism, as well, jutting skyward above all else as a beacon. What's interesting to me is how that little red accent in the composition draws my eye. It’s like a cultural declaration of home: smoke equals hearth, hearth equals home, and the phallic symbol denotes strength. Even if we can’t see any smoke. The gate below seals off the residents even more effectively. Is the artist playing tricks here? Curator: Or, rather, is she showing us the reality of those symbols? After all, the very solid looking iron fence suggests boundaries. And consider those masses of green in the foreground; the trees seem like watchful figures protecting an insular space from the outside world. It gives a sense of enforced separation. Editor: That walled-off sense really does create a fascinating contradiction. The greenery wants to overflow, yet that stark barrier says something about societal expectations and perhaps unspoken fears. This simple house portrait turns into an exploration of identity within the community. Is it belonging, or the struggle to belong? The shadow under the hedge on the sidewalk seems almost sinister, don't you think? Curator: Yes, it does. I feel, as I look at it, that Mr. Stewart's house and its surrounding nature is as much a projection of its occupant's inner life, as it is of brick and mortar. Editor: Yes, that image has resonated with me; it seems a quiet depiction, full of encoded meaning that leaves much to the imagination. Curator: I concur entirely. Thank you for adding so much to our discussion today.