Candle and Rush Light Holder c. 1938

Jack Staloff’s Candle and Rush Light Holder rendered in graphite reveals an object which is both familiar and strange. It seems like a dark, brooding presence, but I can also imagine the artist carefully observing the play of light on its surface, as it comes into being line by line. I wonder what Staloff was thinking as he drew, whether he felt like an archeologist trying to capture a relic from the past. The precision and attention to detail evoke a sense of reverence, a desire to preserve something that might otherwise be lost or forgotten. The drawing feels almost like a meditation on form and function, light and shadow. The lines create a sense of depth and texture that invite us to reach out and touch the object, to feel its weight and solidity in our hands. It’s like Staloff is saying: "Here is a thing of simple beauty, born of necessity, but deserving of our attention and respect.”