Plaid Homespun Coverlet 1935 - 1942

Clyde Cheney made this study of a plaid homespun coverlet using wool, at some point between 1855 and 1995. I love the directness of this little painting. The colors are pretty simple – red and blue – and the plaid itself is classic. I can imagine Cheney, really feeling the texture of the wool, trying to get it just right on the page. There's something so honest about rendering a textile: you have to look closely at the weave, the way the threads intersect, to capture the feel of it. And you know, that reminds me of Agnes Martin, in a weird way. Both artists are using grids, but to totally different ends. Martin is all about transcendence, whereas Cheney is like, "Here's a blanket. Isn't it neat?" Yet they're both sharing this really intimate vision with us. It goes to show, painters are always chatting to each other, across time and space. We all get something from each other.