Tea Kettle 1935 - 1942

Editor: So, this drawing, "Tea Kettle" by Paul Poffinbarger, done between 1935 and 1942, looks like it was made with charcoal and pencil. It feels like more than just a study of a simple object; it almost has a portrait-like quality. What do you make of it? Curator: Well, what I find compelling is its very ordinariness. It’s not glorifying a grand historical moment or depicting an idealized figure. It’s a tea kettle. What do we associate with tea kettles culturally? Domesticity, the working class maybe, perhaps even a kind of quiet rebellion against more elevated subjects that often filled museum walls back then. Editor: Rebellion? In a tea kettle? Curator: Yes, think about it. During this period, realism in art was often linked to social realism and depicting the lives of everyday people. By choosing such a mundane object, Poffinbarger subtly elevates the domestic sphere, suggesting it's worthy of artistic consideration. Did his choice empower people by creating an ideal? Editor: That makes a lot of sense! I hadn't thought of it in terms of empowering everyday life and how radical it can be to create something beautiful. Curator: Exactly! And it's the institutional aspect too; displaying something like this challenged conventions about what *should* be in a museum. Even now, it encourages us to consider the artfulness in our daily lives, and what institutions choose to recognize. What do you think? Editor: Definitely changes my perspective. It's no longer just a tea kettle to me! I see the cultural implications of it now. Thank you for opening my eyes to it. Curator: My pleasure. These small details often tell bigger stories.