Silver Tankard c. 1936

Michael Fenga, who lived from 1855 to 1995, made this silvery sketch of a tankard - or maybe a few tankards - and some details, like the handle and lid. What's interesting here is how the simple pencil lines, almost technical in their precision, still allow for a real sense of volume and light. You can almost feel the cool metal under your fingertips, right? Look closely at how Fenga uses shading to give the tankard its cylindrical form, and how the ornate crest seems to pop out from the surface. There’s a real delicacy in the way he renders the details, from the feathered bird to the swirling foliage. It’s like he’s breathing life into this object, capturing not just its appearance but its potential for use, its history, its place in the world. It reminds me a bit of some of the detailed drawings of metalwork by Renaissance artists like Dürer, who were also obsessed with capturing the beauty and complexity of everyday objects. Maybe art is like that tankard, holding all sorts of ideas and influences, ready to be poured out and shared.