Shroud Deck Eye 1939

Here's a drawing made in 1959 by Eugene Bartz that isolates a single piece of rusty old hardware. It's like Bartz wanted to capture the essence of this object, the feeling of something weathered, worn, and maybe a little forgotten. You can almost feel the texture in the drawing. Bartz painstakingly worked with the layering of color to depict the build-up of rust. Imagine Bartz focusing intently, trying to translate the object to paper. The level of care he takes to depict this humble object is kind of beautiful, don’t you think? It makes you consider the beauty in the mundane. This feels aligned with other art that asks us to look closely at things we often overlook. It’s part of a conversation artists have across time, to see what is possible in the act of close observation. Ultimately, it’s a reminder that the world is full of potential inspiration, if you just take the time to look.