Butter Mold c. 1941

This is Mary Owen's delicate watercolour of a butter mold, patiently rendered with subtle washes of brown and cream on paper. I can almost feel the artist's hand, carefully layering each stroke to build up the form and texture of the object. What's so beautiful is the way Owen captures the light playing across the carved surface, accentuating the intricate floral design. There's something so intimate and tender about this painting, as if Owen is inviting us to contemplate the simple beauty of everyday objects. It makes me think about her attention to the process of seeing and recording—maybe it was a form of meditation for her? It also resonates with other painters, like Giorgio Morandi, who found endless inspiration in the quiet contemplation of ordinary objects. In the end, painting is a way of looking, a way of feeling, and a way of making sense of the world around us. We are all in an ongoing conversation across time, inspiring each other's creativity, in a constant flux.