Piano 1935 - 1942

George Loughridge rendered this vision of a piano in watercolor. He was born in 1855 and lived until 1995, so he lived through an incredible amount of change! Looking at the thin washes, I start thinking about his touch, how careful he must have been, layering those colours so delicately to build up the form. The level of detail makes me wonder whether he worked from life, maybe with the actual piano sitting right there? I imagine him pausing, squinting, and then mixing another shade of brown on his palette. There's a real intimacy to this painting. It reminds me that all paintings – even those that seem representational – are really about seeing and feeling the world. And about one artist communicating with another, across time.