Clock 1936

Lawrence Phillips rendered this clock sometime between 1855 and 1995, using pencil and watercolor on paper. I can see how the process unfolds here: first, the sharp lines of the clock's outline, followed by washes of brown to evoke a wood grain effect. And, wow, those little details are so precise! I can almost see him, Phillips, hunched over this work, meticulously filling in the Roman numerals, and then adding an explosion of color to the vase of flowers on the lower half. I love the way the painting flattens the form, even though it's trying to create the illusion of three-dimensionality, which gives it a slightly wonky feeling. It makes me think about other works that deal with time and duration in painting. I am thinking of Giorgio Morandi’s still life paintings or On Kawara’s date paintings. In painting, time collapses. I wonder if Phillips felt that too.