Cap c. 1940

Dorothy M. Gerhard made "Cap" sometime in her life, using what looks like pencil on paper. Imagine her, carefully sketching these lace bonnets. There's something so tender about the light touch of the pencil, creating a world of frills and curves, capturing the essence of a bygone era. It makes me think about the act of drawing itself—the way the artist's hand must have danced across the paper, coaxing these delicate forms into existence. I wonder what Gerhard was thinking about as she drew, perhaps lost in memories of her own childhood or imagining the women who might have worn such bonnets. The transparency of the pencil lines, like whispers on the page, evokes a sense of vulnerability, offering us a glimpse into the artist's inner world. This piece is an example of how art is an act of remembering, an act of giving life to something.