Suffolk Latch c. 1939

Editor: Regina Henderer's watercolor, "Suffolk Latch," created around 1939, depicts a single door latch. Its rusty texture contrasts against the stark white background, almost like a portrait of a forgotten object. How do you interpret this work within its historical context? Curator: Henderer painted this as part of the Index of American Design, a New Deal project aimed at documenting American material culture during the Depression. What stories might a simple latch tell us about a nation grappling with economic hardship and looking back to simpler times? Editor: So, the latch represents more than just itself? Is it a symbol? Curator: Exactly! Consider what "home" and "security" might have meant in 1939. The detailed rendering elevates a humble object. But is there a subtle political statement here too? Archiving "Americana" became important in this period. Who got to decide what was truly "American," and what were the implications of that? Editor: That's interesting. I hadn’t considered the role of selection and its inherent biases. Curator: How does focusing on this handcrafted object—as opposed to, say, mass-produced industrial goods—serve a particular narrative? Whose histories are amplified, and whose are left out of the frame? Editor: It almost romanticizes a pre-industrial past, doesn’t it? And it raises questions about labor and value… Curator: Precisely. The painting encourages us to reconsider everyday objects as repositories of social and political meaning. What did you get out of this conversation? Editor: That ordinary items, like this door latch, can be powerful cultural symbols, particularly when considered within a specific historical and political lens. Thanks!