Applique Coverlet (Detail) c. 1941

This Applique Coverlet by Adolph Opstad, it's this curious, textile piece, and I love how it feels like a visual poem. The texture in this piece is amazing, there is a real sense of depth and tactile quality. I love how the different fabrics create these layers and patterns, like the brown ladder with stitched rungs contrasting against the pale cloth of the background. And then, there's this sort of reaching dog, rendered in soft pastel colors, straining for the grapes. It makes you think about desire, and the things we reach for. Opstad creates this sense of depth and movement with the stitches and the patchwork, and you can almost feel the artist's hand in the making. It reminds me a bit of Matisse's cut-outs, but with a kind of folky, handmade charm. In art, it's not about the final product, but the act of making, the conversation between the artist and the materials, it is about the reaching.