Whipsaw c. 1937

This watercolor painting by William Hoffman presents us with a utilitarian object: a whipsaw. Its serrated edge, designed for the brute force of cutting, is hard to ignore. Consider how similar toothed blades appear in myth, wielded by Chronos to castrate his father, Uranus, or as weapons of divine retribution. This object also evokes the cyclical nature of work itself—the rhythmic push and pull, the repetitive motion that shapes our world. Think of how the saw has evolved, from a crude stone implement to this refined metal tool. The transformation mirrors our own, reflecting the progress, but also the potential violence embedded within our nature. The whipsaw, like so many tools, becomes a vessel for projecting our deepest desires and fears.