Wrought Iron Pot Hooks c. 1938

Fred Hassebrock made this watercolor drawing of "Wrought Iron Pot Hooks" sometime during his lifetime. It's like he’s taken these utilitarian objects, these hooks, and given them the star treatment. The thing that strikes me is the attention to detail. I bet Hassebrock spent hours studying how light catches the curves of the metal, how the rust blooms in certain spots. You can almost feel the weight and coolness of the iron just by looking. What I love is how he turns something so ordinary into something worth contemplating. He is asking us to look at the overlooked. It makes me think about the everyday objects that surround us. Who knows, maybe the next great masterpiece is hiding in plain sight, waiting for someone to notice.