Shaker Wooden Bucket 1935 - 1942

Eugene Barrell made this watercolor painting of a 'Shaker Wooden Bucket', but we don't know exactly when. I love how the image feels both flat and dimensional at the same time. Those vertical bands of wood, alternating between light and dark, they're not just lines, they suggest roundness and form! I wonder what Barrell was thinking as he painted this object. Maybe he was admiring the simple beauty and functionality of Shaker design. The black bands feel like a graphic intervention—but maybe I am just projecting my own painterly desires onto this work. I can feel Barrell working, trying to capture the essence of this humble object. It makes me think about other painters, like Giorgio Morandi, who found endless inspiration in everyday objects. It’s all about the way we see, isn’t it? How we transform the ordinary into something extraordinary through the act of painting.