Seated on the Stairs by Raquel Reis

Medium: Watercolor pencil

Dimensions: 29 x 42 cm

Year: 2023

Price: $500.00 USD

Status: available

“Seated on the Stairs” began with a familiar summer moment in Brazil: a woman pausing on the staircase of my home, close to the iron gate that quietly defines the boundary between private life and the world beyond. Her posture carries a personal memory. I modeled the folded hands after my mother’s, allowing her presence to enter the work through a small, intimate gesture. I wanted the figure to feel both grounded and fluid, as though she belongs to the architecture while also resisting its limits. Deep greens move through the stairs and background, softening the separation between body and place. Her pink blouse and sandals bring warmth and individuality, while vibrant color, strong contours, and restless marks suggest an inner life that cannot be contained by a single outline. Using watercolor pencils with very little water allowed me to blend certain passages while preserving the immediacy of drawing. The dissolving boundaries between figure and ground reflect how memory works for me: people, rooms, gestures, and colors gradually become inseparable. I hope this work offers a sense of recognition, inviting viewers to remember the quiet poses and familiar spaces through which loved ones remain present.