Shelf Clock c. 1936

Lawrence Phillips made this shelf clock with watercolor and graphite at an unknown date. The level of detail is really something, especially how he renders the woodgrain. You can almost feel the smoothness of the polished wood. Look how Phillips layers the colors to create depth and shadow. See the way he uses thin washes of brown and red to build up the wood tones, and then adds delicate lines of graphite to define the edges and details? I love the way he renders the clock face with such precision, but then lets the floral design at the base fade into a more abstract pattern. It’s like he's playing with the tension between representation and abstraction. It reminds me a little of Charles Sheeler, another artist who found beauty in everyday objects. It is a reminder that art is all around us, if we just take the time to look.