Bishop Hill: Bandwagon by H. Langden Brown

c. 1939

Bishop Hill: Bandwagon

Listen to curator's interpretation

0:00
0:00

Curatorial notes

H. Langden Brown made this drawing of a bandwagon, maybe in watercolor, and it's like a daydream on paper. I can totally see the charm in how the artist approached the subject. The red of the wagon pops right out, but it's the details that grab me, like the gold filigree and shell embellishments. You can almost feel the bumpy texture of the decoration over the smoothness of the wagon's surface. And check out the back - it's got this little American flag design tucked in there, five stars only. I keep wondering, what’s the story behind that? It reminds me of the work of Erastus Salisbury Field, maybe, with its quirky take on American history, or even Joseph Yoakum's visionary landscapes. Art’s just one big conversation, right? It's not about answers, it's about all the different ways we can ask questions.