Wooden Decoy c. 1937

This is a lovely drawing of a Wooden Decoy by Chris Makrenos, made with what looks like graphite and watercolor. There’s a real softness in the way the artist has worked the materials, giving the decoy a quiet, contemplative presence. I love how Makrenos lets the grain of the paper come through, especially in the lighter areas. You can almost feel the texture, which contrasts with the smooth, almost velvety darkness of the decoy’s back. See how the colors shift and blend? It reminds me of the way light plays on surfaces, not fixed but always changing. The little dots scattered across the dark area of the wing suggest the form without defining it too precisely, which lets our imagination fill in the gaps. It reminds me a little of Alex Katz, but with a more folksy, personal feel. It's a wonderful example of how art can be both representational and deeply abstract. The beauty of art is that it keeps the conversation going, never settling on one single truth.