Whistle c. 1940s

Curator: How striking! The composition is almost childlike, or from a playful dream—do you feel the whimsy too? Editor: My attention is snagged by its materiality, frankly. We are looking at “Whistle,” made sometime in the 1940s, location and authorship unknown, it appears to be a crafted object made from carved wood and mixed-media. You sense the careful process and assembly immediately, the layers upon layers of intention. Curator: Indeed! A hidden artisan’s loving hands crafted it—a dance of dedication through the wood and the strokes, now frozen in time, don’t you think? Editor: There’s labor involved here. It's decorative art elevated by its making. Look closely— the crude painting, it tells its own history of labor, it appears like this might be mass produced in some way, because it doesn’t show any sign of perfection as it might have taken less time making. Curator: Mass-produced, maybe? To me it breathes like the breath through the whistle itself! Notice how it resembles the musical instrument from a distance but closer it is sculpture made from an artist. Editor: Well, the ropes, and then the color! Do you sense a potential readymade, like Duchamp? Are we elevating this crafted musical instrument or considering it within its original context? I lean toward this musical device being produced within cultural landscape of mass art for decoration that often overlooks human contribution involved, the process in how we create things with hands. It invites us to think of more. Curator: Art has such a brilliant way of mirroring the beauty and irony that surround us, doesn’t it? Editor: Yes, but always look at art as a window through which a person has worked physically. Curator: In the end, perhaps this little ‘Whistle’ blows melodies through the heart… or at least poses a question or two along the way.