-Junior Cash Register c. 1920s

This small metal "Junior Cash Register" by E. Stevens sits here like a playful poem on commerce. It's got these intricate, almost baroque details, embossed on its surface, swirling around the word 'Junior' up top, and 'Cash' near the drawer. I imagine E. Stevens, maybe not trying to mimic the real world, but to re-imagine it. There’s something about the miniature size that reminds me of a toy, like a dream of capitalism for kids. The metal itself has a worn texture, a certain patina that suggests it's been handled, loved, maybe even forgotten. The question I keep asking myself is: what’s so interesting about making a small version of a big thing? Maybe it's about wanting to hold the world in your hands, to simplify it, or make it more manageable. I think artists always have been, and always will be, in a dialogue with each other. One artist's exploration becomes another's inspiration.