Umbrella Stand c. 1940

Editor: Here we have Jacob Lipkin’s "Umbrella Stand," a pencil drawing from around 1940. It depicts…well, an incredibly elaborate umbrella stand! There's something almost melancholic about it, like a forgotten monument. What do you make of this piece? Curator: Melancholic is a great word for it! It feels almost like a memory dredged up from the sea, doesn't it? You see the sailor perched atop a fantastical base filled with nautical instruments—anchors, harpoons...a whole maritime graveyard! For me, it's Lipkin's choice to render it in pencil that adds to the wistful, slightly dreamlike quality. It is as if he is recalling a fevered dream. He is grounding the fantasy through mundane, delicate labor. Does that register for you? Editor: Absolutely! It’s the unexpected intimacy of pencil on paper that contrasts with the grandeur of the object itself. Did Lipkin create other design drawings like this? Curator: Yes, and that's a great question to ponder. Lipkin documented everyday objects like this. He captured what otherwise could become ordinary within this art form, like he found extraordinary beauty within the seemingly mundane. I almost imagine him discovering this eccentric umbrella stand in some dusty antique shop, completely captivated and driven to capture its essence with his pencils. What strikes you most about its…purpose, or lack thereof? Editor: I think it's less about function and more about appreciating the beauty and maybe the humor in these everyday items that we often overlook. I think, I have a whole new appreciation for where my umbrella sits. Curator: I love that! So, perhaps Lipkin wasn't just documenting objects, but inviting us to find the extraordinary within the ordinary. A true gift, isn’t it?