Happy New Year, from the New Years 1890 series (N227) issued by Kinney Bros. 1889 - 1890

This small chromolithograph, "Happy New Year," was created around 1890 by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company. The scene depicts a winter landscape, where the ground is covered in a field of snow. Notice how the composition divides the scene into distinct zones. On the left, a boy confidently skates, his arms outstretched for balance, while another figure has fallen through the ice in the foreground. The limited color palette, dominated by blues, tans, and whites, enhances the sense of a cold winter's day. The choice of a stark, contrasting visual between the two figures destabilizes the established festive values of New Years. This juxtaposition prompts us to consider the fragility of celebration and the ever-present possibility of failure or misfortune. The scene prompts a reflection on the cyclical nature of time and expectation.