Tie-back c. 1938

Harry Jennings made this watercolor drawing of a tie-back, but we don’t know when. Look at how the image shimmers with a golden hue, like a memory of a gilded object. I can imagine Jennings hunched over his drawing table, squinting at the tie-back, and then at his paper, carefully rendering the ornate floral patterns. He probably thought about the light glinting off the metal, trying to capture the texture and weight of the thing. The tie-back is a simple, functional object, but Jennings transforms it into something precious and beautiful. It makes me think about the way we elevate the everyday through art. Like Warhol's soup cans, or Van Gogh's chair, this tie-back becomes more than just an object, it becomes a symbol of craftmanship. The drawing reminds us that even the most ordinary things can be a source of inspiration and wonder. We need to celebrate artists like Jennings, who find beauty in the mundane.