-Home Budget- still bank c. 1929

Editor: Here we have Elmer Sas's "Home Budget - still bank" from around 1929, a mixed-media assemblage, incorporating metal. It’s quite striking, a bold, bright red, but it feels very functional and solid. What catches your eye about this piece? Curator: It’s fascinating how such a mundane object becomes imbued with a certain cultural weight. That red screams both "stop!" and "save!". Do you see how the artist juxtaposes order with this visceral, almost aggressive color? Think of what red symbolized in the 1920s - both prosperity and warning during that pre-Depression era. Editor: I see what you mean. It is like a visual command. So the multiple slots on top – are they symbolic as well? Curator: Precisely! This isn't just a container for money. It represents compartmentalization, the strict categorization of income. It’s a micro-management system manifested in metal. Where do you imagine those individual slots might lead? What psychological impact does such division have on saving, you think? Editor: Perhaps labeling takes away any joy from it! Saving should be incentivized instead! Also, with its style, it sort of makes me think of those buildings made in Art-Deco that had the same functionality but were supposed to have art to embellish their design... Curator: Interesting parallel, between architecture, practicality, and imposed societal constructs, I like where your observation is going! Elmer Sas gives form to very particular and widespread human needs: security and prosperity. Editor: It’s remarkable to think of all those desires captured in such a compact, colorful little box. I see so much more to it now. Curator: Indeed. It’s a testament to how even the simplest objects are brimming with layers of cultural and personal significance if one knows how to read the signs.