Deep Aquamarine Bottle c. 1941

V.L. Vance made this drawing of a bottle, maybe in the middle of the last century, using what looks like watercolor or gouache. The way the pigment is applied so thinly lets the paper breathe, giving the piece an airy quality. What's really striking is how Vance captures the light playing on the glass. See those thicker, darker lines outlining the form? They almost feel like a memory of a line, not quite describing the object but evoking its essence. The swirls remind me of Art Nouveau, but pared way down, made almost primitive. I love how the artist leaves so much open, letting the light and shadow do the work. It's the kind of piece that whispers rather than shouts. This reminds me a little of Charles Burchfield’s watercolors, especially in the way he used line and color to animate everyday objects with a touch of surrealism. Ultimately, it's this quiet ambiguity that makes it so compelling.