Silver Porringer c. 1936

Horace Reina drew this silver porringer, but when? It's a memory of something, an heirloom, or a tool, rendered in soft graphite pencil on paper. I can just imagine Reina's hand moving across the page, coaxing the form of the bowl out of the flat surface. The side view and decorative features sketched nearby like annotations, it makes me wonder if this drawing served as a preliminary design? I love how the reflective sheen of the silver is captured through delicate gradations of tone, giving a sense of weight and volume. The subtle lines remind me of other artists, like Vija Celmins, who also use the medium of graphite to meditate on everyday objects, turning the mundane into something precious and contemplative. There's something so satisfying about the simplicity and directness of drawing, isn't there? It’s like whispering a secret directly onto the page, a quiet conversation between artist and object.