Drawer Pull c. 1936

Janet Riza made this drawing of drawer pulls sometime in the twentieth century, using colored pencil on paper. The pale background gives a feeling of aged paper, like a document, maybe from an instruction manual. But these aren't just diagrams, they're full of life. Look how she models the brass, with these strokes of soft, warm color. See how she suggests the way light might bounce off them? There is something so intimate about the care that Riza has taken in rendering these details. Note the precision with which she captured their forms. They have a kind of quiet dignity. I am reminded of the work of Joseph Cornell, another artist who found endless beauty in the everyday. Art is about making connections, and about seeing potential for beauty in unexpected places.