Plate - "Exchange, Baltimore" c. 1936

This plate depicting “Exchange, Baltimore” was made by Helmut Hiatt sometime before his death in 1995. It's interesting how a functional object can become a canvas, right? Looking at this plate, I’m drawn to the way the central image of the Baltimore Exchange is framed by that ring of flowers and foliage. The image is monochrome, but it’s not just black and white. The tones pull toward sepia, the way memory sometimes does. It's like Hiatt is not just representing a place, but also an idea of a place, filtered through time and personal experience. Consider that fine line circling the plate's center. Think of that line as the boundary between the public and the private, the civic and the domestic. The Exchange represents commerce, community, and exchange, while the plate itself is about the intimate act of eating, of sharing. These are echoes, not opposites. It reminds me of Warhol's soup cans – elevating the everyday. It asks us to consider where we place value, and what we choose to commemorate.