Two Ornaments 

Scott Fraser painted ‘Two Ornaments’ using oil on panel. The reflective surfaces of the ornaments invite a consideration of the role of ornament in society and the institutional and domestic contexts in which decoration operates. Fraser seems to critique the commercialization of festive traditions, with the ornaments representing the mass-produced, ephemeral nature of contemporary celebrations. The choice of ornaments, objects associated with domestic festivity, hints at the rituals and traditions that shape social bonds, family, and cultural identity. In American society, the exchange and display of gifts are associated with consumerism. So, in what way might we read this image as a comment on the commercialization of the holidays? Considering the time in which Fraser was painting, we might also ask how far it is a reaction to the economic policies put in place by the Reagan and Bush administrations. Art history depends on archives, economic data and political history.