Connnecticut Chest 1935 - 1942

Charles Squires made this drawing of a Connecticut Chest using graphite and watercolour. What strikes me is the way Squires handled the watercolour, thinly, allowing the underdrawing to structure the form. It's like he’s thinking through the object, layer by layer. Look at the drawer, pulled slightly open, revealing its interior, its like an invitation. The floral motifs, painted with such care, seem to grow organically out of the dark ground of the chest, it is an image of nature and artifice in close conversation. The whole piece has a kind of quiet energy, doesn't it? Squires’ drawing reminds me a little of some of the work of Philip Guston. Not in style, but in the way he treats form. Both artists seem to relish the act of looking and describing, embracing the oddness and beauty of everyday objects. Art is an act of translation and interpretation.