Mail Pouch c. 1942

Stella Mosher made this watercolor painting of a Mail Pouch, at an unknown date. The way she's approached the subject matter, rendering these leather pouches with such care, makes you wonder about the history of the object, or her personal connection to it. The muted brown palette and delicate washes give the image a sense of nostalgia. Look at the texture she's created on the pouch at the top left, with those intricate details! She's really studied the object, and you can feel her interest in its physical form. The open pouch on the right has an almost architectural feel to it, while the linear rendering below has an unfinished, diagrammatic quality. Mosher's work reminds me a bit of some of the Shaker artists, with that same attention to detail and appreciation for the everyday. And like them, she embraces the beauty of simple forms and the poetry of ordinary objects. What do you think?