Spinning Stick c. 1938

Maud M. Holme made "Spinning Stick" with watercolor on paper. I can imagine Maud, brush in hand, carefully building up the tones on this object, coaxing out the form with layers of delicate washes. The palette is pretty muted, all browns and creams. I'm thinking she must have been fascinated by this wooden artifact, by its simple elegance. What’s the texture of the paper like? I wonder if she picked it specifically for its slight tooth, to catch the pigment just so. Look at the detail in the rounded ends. Each swirl and knot is lovingly rendered. You can almost feel the smoothness of the wood beneath your fingers. It’s more than just a representation; it's an act of quiet contemplation, a meditation on form and function. The painting has an unassuming quality that reminds me of Agnes Martin’s minimalist grids. Holme, like Martin, embraces subtlety, finding profundity in the ordinary. It’s as if she's inviting us to slow down, to really see the beauty in the simplest of things.