Wine Keg c. 1939

Editor: We’re looking at John Tarantino’s "Wine Keg," circa 1939, a mixed-media drawing of an earthenware container. It feels…patriotic, almost propagandistic, with the eagle and stars. How should we understand a piece like this? Curator: It’s interesting to consider how symbols like the eagle were deployed in the late 1930s. The drawing style, mimicking a somewhat rustic ceramic object, reminds us that imagery associated with nationhood frequently finds its way into everyday, domestic items. How might this keg have functioned, not just as a container, but as a social object? Editor: So, it's more than just a wine keg? Was it meant to promote certain ideals, like American identity? Curator: Precisely! The object itself would likely be present at social gatherings. Thus, it becomes part of how people expressed, performed, and perhaps even negotiated their relationship to national identity in a very personal way. Consider the context: The US was emerging from the Depression and heading toward another world war. Items displaying national symbols helped solidify a sense of unity. Does that change how you see it? Editor: Definitely. I was focusing on its aesthetic qualities, but you’re making me think about the social function of this image, almost like visual rhetoric. What's being said and to whom? Curator: Exactly. Even the choice to represent the object in drawing, rather than simply using it, creates another layer of communication. The artist John Tarantino wasn't just capturing an object, but making a statement through that choice. Editor: Wow, I'm going to think about that relationship between object, image and messaging. Curator: Yes. It highlights the fascinating interplay between art, national identity, and material culture.