Amateur sigaretten 1940 - 1945

This is a little brick of pleasure, “Amateur sigaretten”, by Louis Dobbelmann. The palette is earthy, warm, and inviting. I think about the maker, probably in a factory, carefully arranging the cigarettes, a repetitive act, but each one has a personal touch, doesn’t it? The design feels hand-drawn, the lettering confidently amateur. It’s as if the designer is winking at us, suggesting that pleasure can be found in the everyday, the imperfect. I’m thinking about other artists who elevated the mundane. Fischli and Weiss, for example, with their photographs of sausages arranged as precarious sculptures. This humble object reminds me that art exists everywhere, in the most unexpected places. And, ultimately, it’s about finding beauty in the ordinary, embracing the amateur, and celebrating the simple pleasures. We are all amateurs, aren’t we?