Baby's Hood c. 1937

Florence Earl made this watercolor of a baby's hood, but we don't know when exactly. It's really about subtle color and the loving rendering of the object. I find myself drawn to how delicately she's handled the medium, how transparent the washes are. There is an incredible amount of detailed work to be seen here, especially in the decorative trim. This is so different from what I do, but I can relate to the impulse to capture something that has personal meaning. It's a way of slowing down time and making a memory tangible. The more I look at Earl's hood, the more it reminds me of Fairfield Porter's domestic scenes. Both artists share a similar quietness. In both, it's the intimacy and attention to detail that makes their work so powerful. Neither artist is striving to be bombastic or shocking, but instead, they seem content to simply observe the world around them. And maybe, in the end, that's enough.