Hammered-Copper Bucket 1938

This is William Kieckhofel's 'Hammered-Copper Bucket', we don't know when it was made, but it's rendered with watercolor. It is what it is: a kind of documentary of an object. But it's also so much more. Look at how the surface of the bucket is built up with tiny dabs of color, like the pointillist painters Seurat or Signac. The marks build up to describe the texture of the copper, but also the way light hits it. It's a humble object, yet Kieckhofel treats it with the same care you might see in a portrait. What I love most is the way the handle loops at the side, a kind of playful gesture that animates the object. It reminds me of a Calder mobile, where simple forms come alive through balance and movement. Art is such an ongoing conversation. We see the world, then we make, then we see again!