Pewter Coffee Pot c. 1936

Beulah Bradleigh made this watercolour painting of a Pewter Coffee Pot, no date given, but I get a sense that this was an exercise in observation, maybe even a commission. Look at the way the artist worked with the surface of the pot, the gentle washes of blue and grey almost capture the feeling of condensation, like it's been sitting out on a cool morning. You know, watercolour is all about transparency, it’s about layering and letting the light bounce off the paper underneath, and Bradleigh really plays with that here. My eye is drawn to the lid of the coffee pot where it meets the main body of the pot. The darker colour and texture creates a sense of depth and roundness that really pops. It shows the artist experimenting with perspective and light in a way that’s both careful and playful. This painting reminds me a little of the still lifes of Giorgio Morandi. Both artists take these everyday objects and find something kind of profound in them. You start to see how even the simplest things can be a chance to explore colour, form, and the beauty of seeing.