Brooch c. 1937

John H. Tercuzzi made this artwork called Brooch, of which the date of making is unknown. The brooch gleams with gold and hints of ruby, and I imagine Tercuzzi hunched over it, each delicate stroke building form. It must have been so fiddly, so absorbing. I wonder what kind of light he worked in? Was there music, or just the quiet scratch of the nib? Look at the way the gold seems to ripple and flow around the ruby heart, like water. The texture and colour isn’t just decoration; it’s about touch, desire, and really seeing. Like he’s not just depicting an object, but capturing the way light plays on its surface, the way it feels to hold it in your hand. Each mark communicates a feeling. Tercuzzi and the other makers, they’re all in conversation, across the years. They are all inspiring each other. To me, this piece shows that painting is really an embodied expression. It is never fixed. It just goes on.