Lipsticks 1964

Curator: Welcome. Today we’re looking at Wayne Thiebaud’s “Lipsticks” painted in 1964. These are oil paints on canvas, giving the work its characteristic glossy surface. Editor: Wow, those colors just pop right out, don’t they? It’s playful, like a candy store, but with a slightly odd vibe...like an army of bullets wearing lipstick! Curator: That contrast between allure and aggression is definitely part of the reading. Considering its creation in 1964, we have to look at how femininity and consumerism were evolving themes against a backdrop of increasing social and political upheaval. Lipstick, a tool of self-expression for some, becomes another commodified item for others. Editor: Absolutely! And the shadows! That intense light transforms these everyday tubes into monumental forms. There’s almost something… worshipful about the way they're staged. Curator: Right, the regimented arrangement evokes mass production while the slight variations in color hint at individuality, setting up an interesting dynamic that speaks to consumer culture as an exercise in choices under manufactured terms. Also, consider that this piece emerged alongside the burgeoning Pop Art movement. Editor: Pop Art with a capital ‘P’ alright, it's funny how the ordinary, once presented with just the right colours, or from an interesting angle, screams ART. This reminds me that the color palette kind of mimics sweets; is he taking cues from the hyper-real sugary world or what? Curator: I think that the sweets and cosmetic colours, the massed, but not identical, rows, they all belong to a hyper-American aesthetic, a moment in time ripe with optimism, anxieties and transformative consumer trends. It speaks of both abundance and a certain artificiality taking root in mainstream life. Editor: Seeing all of them lined up is like peeking into the future—like advertising on overdrive—maybe it even anticipated our selfie obsessed age! Curator: Perhaps so! The way in which objects gain importance in our collective psychology, what we signal about ourselves via the things that surround us… Thiebaud tapped into something prophetic here. Editor: Totally! It gives a retro, glamorous charge, but also leaves a feeling like, wait...what exactly am I desiring when I'm desiring 'this?'