Hurricane Shade 1936

John Dana made this drawing of a glass vase sometime around 1936. There is a real sense of care to it, a sense of love for the design. I am imagining him drawing the floral and leaf patterns, so gently repetitive. Maybe he was thinking of the weight and the form of the original glass vase he was copying. How would that weight feel in his own hands? Was he imagining how the light might shine through the glass? The vase has a clear, clean geometry. I wonder if he liked that? He was such a precise artist and designer, so maybe! Dana, and so many artists, invite us into their creative process, to explore their intentions, and to embrace the act of seeing. He knew that art is an ongoing dialogue, inspiring new ways of thinking and creating across generations.