Pitcher c. 1937 - 1938

Frank Fumagalli made this watercolor painting of a pitcher, we don’t know exactly when. I really get a sense of the making process here, I can imagine the artist working slowly and methodically, building up the image in layers. The blue and gray tones are quiet and calm, but they also have a certain depth to them. The floral decoration has a kind of folksy charm. I like the way the forms are both representational and slightly abstracted. I think Fumagalli was interested in how to capture not just the object itself, but also the texture, the light, and the feeling of the object. I think of Morandi who also seemed so interested in the everyday object, but of course he wasn’t the first, nor will he be the last. Painters, we’re all in conversation with each other, trying to figure out how to see the world and then translate that vision onto a surface. It's a constant exploration of new ways of seeing and feeling.