Adjustable Candle Holder c. 1939

Howard Lumbard made this drawing of an adjustable candle holder, but we don't know when. His life spanned the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a time of enormous change. Why would he choose to depict such a humble object? We can speculate by looking at the visual codes and cultural references. The drawing is simple, almost diagrammatic. The candle holder itself is functional, not decorative. Perhaps Lumbard was interested in the beauty of everyday objects, elevating them through the act of drawing. The Arts and Crafts movement, which flourished in Europe and North America during his lifetime, rejected mass production and celebrated handcrafted goods. Could this drawing be a quiet endorsement of those values, a subtle critique of a rapidly industrializing world? As historians, we can delve deeper by researching Lumbard's life, his artistic influences, and the social context in which he worked. Only then can we fully understand the meaning of this seemingly simple drawing.