Drawer Pull c. 1936

Editor: Here we have "Drawer Pull," a drawing rendered in pencil and watercolor by Janet Riza around 1936. What strikes me is how it elevates something so functional—almost mundane—into an object of beauty. What do you think makes this drawing stand out? Curator: Well, isn't it funny how we imbue even the smallest objects with meaning? Look at that eagle, centered there—such a simple, powerful symbol of America in the middle of the Depression era. Maybe Riza was thinking about hope, resilience, the little details that make a house a home even when things are tough. Do you get a sense of that? Editor: I do, definitely. The detailed rendering also gives it an almost aspirational quality, doesn't it? Like she's idealizing this one small part of a larger, more luxurious whole. Curator: Exactly! It makes you wonder about the bigger picture—literally. What kind of furniture did this drawer pull belong to? A grand desk, perhaps? Or something far more modest? Riza leaves that up to our imagination, focusing on this little jewel. It is almost sculptural. Editor: I see what you mean. So, it's less about the drawer pull itself and more about what it represents—or the stories we project onto it. Curator: Precisely. Think of all the hands that might have touched it, the secrets it guarded. That’s what whispers to me! Editor: I’ve never looked at a drawer pull and thought of secrets! That’s wonderful! Thank you. Curator: My pleasure, isn't it fabulous how art encourages us to really *see* things? To consider an item not as just an object, but rather as a symbol or storyteller?