Pewter Flagon c. 1936

A. Zaidenberg made this drawing of a pewter flagon, sometime between 1855 and 1995. The drawing is delicate. Look closely and you can see all these tiny lines making up the flagon's surface. The artist built up the form with a tight hatching technique. The metal appears almost translucent in places. The reflections are beautifully captured. See how the light gently curves around the handle? There’s a real sense of care, almost reverence, in the way the artist renders this utilitarian object. It reminds me of Giorgio Morandi, with his still lifes of bottles. Both artists find the extraordinary in the everyday. The beauty of the simple form. The light, the shadow. The quiet contemplation of objects. Both make a virtue of tonal variation. Both prompt you to slow down, and really look.