Deer Lawn Figure c. 1940

Editor: This is Elisabeth Fulda's "Deer Lawn Figure" from around 1940, created with charcoal and other drawing media. The artwork presents a sculptural depiction of a deer, seemingly grounded on a platform. What stands out to me is its meticulous rendering of the deer's form. What can you tell me about the work? Curator: This rendering, focusing on the sculpted deer lawn ornament, speaks volumes about material aspirations of the 1940s. Consider the labour and the industrial processes involved in creating actual cast-metal deer for lawns, status symbols distributed across domestic spaces. Fulda's work cleverly re-presents it in humble materials. What's replicated here, and why? Editor: You're highlighting a contradiction. The sculpture the drawing represents embodies wealth, while the charcoal drawing of the sculpture uses modest materials to depict it. Almost like a democratization of a symbol, right? Curator: Exactly! It challenges the boundaries. Was it fine art? Was it a preliminary drawing used for mass production? Fulda brings those separate worlds together in this work. By choosing charcoal, is she pointing toward the carboniferous base material in both coal-fired industrial production, and even further down, into deep time before the age of plastics? Editor: That's really fascinating, making the industrial origins so obvious, but through very manual and reproducible means! This really turns our initial impressions on its head, pointing not just at beauty but towards processes of production. Thanks, I’ll definitely look at art differently now. Curator: Indeed. Looking closely at the means and context really unveils some insightful dialogues about labor, class and artistry.