Sunbonnet c. 1936

Editor: Here we have Roberta Spicer's "Sunbonnet," likely from around 1936, rendered with pencil and watercolor. I find the detailed rendering of the fabric juxtaposed with the sketched outlines of other views particularly intriguing. What formal qualities strike you most? Curator: The composition immediately directs my attention to the interplay between meticulous detail and deliberate incompleteness. The fully rendered sunbonnet serves as the focal point, its textures and patterns meticulously described. How does this contrast with the ghosted images behind? Editor: The outlines certainly simplify the form, drawing attention to the structure rather than the surface details. They feel almost like diagrams, less about capturing the 'look' and more about understanding the 'make' of the object. Curator: Precisely. This juxtaposition serves to highlight the artwork's focus on the interplay between form and representation, as we compare a completed object to an abstracted idea of that object. Do you also observe how the lines within the hat point towards different depths and levels? Editor: Yes, I do. It almost flattens and complicates the image all at once, with an ambiguous perspective of what is to be conveyed by the artist. Curator: An astute observation. What this piece presents to its viewers is a semiotic message open to interpretation, even philosophical interrogation. This allows Spicer’s study to endure with endless subjective lenses in different contexts. Editor: That’s a really insightful way to look at it; I hadn't considered the different representational layers. Now I'm seeing the incomplete bonnets not as just drafts, but as part of the final art itself, contributing to the discourse. Curator: Indeed. These elements enhance the intrinsic qualities of Spicer’s visual form. The drawing fosters discussion and reveals new perspectives for its audiences.