Pitcher c. 1941

Here's a drawing of a pitcher, likely made with watercolor or gouache, by Henry Moran. I like thinking about the kind of headspace the artist might have been in, just painting away, trying to get the curves and the light just right. It’s all tonal, earthy browns and tans, like looking at something made of clay. I can imagine Moran carefully mixing the pigments, maybe adding a touch of umber to deepen the shadows, or a bit of sienna to warm up the highlights. The brushstrokes feel delicate, precise. The painterly touch brings a certain warmth to the image, even though the palette is quite subdued. You can almost feel the artist’s hand moving across the paper, trying to capture the subtle nuances of the object. It reminds me that painting is not just about representation, but about an intimate exchange between the artist, the subject, and the materials. Ultimately, it’s about the embodied feeling of the pitcher.