Rocking Chair c. 1937

Editor: This is Henry Meyer's "Rocking Chair," dating from around 1937, made with watercolor and drawing. It has a very solitary and handmade feel. How do you interpret this work? Curator: For me, the importance lies in understanding the conditions of its production. Consider the social context of the 1930s: the Great Depression. Suddenly, the process of making – and remaking, mending – becomes paramount. Watercolor, as a medium, lends itself to the depiction of everyday objects, of homespun materiality. What labor is represented here, beyond just the making of the chair? Editor: You mean the labor that went into creating the rocking chair itself? Do you think that impacts the aesthetic value? Curator: Absolutely. Think about the knowledge and skill embedded in constructing something functional yet comfortable, something for the domestic sphere. The straw seat is crucial; it signifies a material sourced from the land, directly connecting the object to agricultural labor. Are we looking at a record of the chair itself, or the system of labor surrounding it? The artist asks us to reconsider traditional notions of value. Editor: So, by focusing on the materials and the work behind it, we’re challenging ideas about what’s considered ‘art’? Curator: Precisely. Meyer's use of watercolor allows us to intimately consider the handcrafted quality. It prompts questions about the status of "high art" versus craft during the Depression era. Whose labor is valued, and whose is not? Editor: That’s given me a whole new perspective. I never thought about how much an image of something functional can point towards larger societal issues. Curator: Exactly. This simple "Rocking Chair" reflects so much more about how art blurs the boundaries between production and cultural expression.