Door Stop: Eagle 1935 - 1942

Curator: This watercolour illustration, dating from 1935-1942, is called "Door Stop: Eagle" and it's by Arthur Mathews. Editor: First impression? That eagle looks less like a symbol of freedom and more like he just stubbed his toe. I find myself oddly empathetic towards its grumpy, grounded stature. Curator: The eagle is, of course, a recurring motif in American symbolism, evoking ideals of power, courage, and national pride. Door stops featuring eagles were very common household objects. Mathews here almost subverts those meanings, as if bringing a mythological beast down to earth—literally. Editor: Grounded, literally! You’re right. The eagle has had a long day. What strikes me is the odd juxtaposition of the heroic eagle and the mundane function it has: keeping a door ajar. Is Mathews having a quiet chuckle about national pride keeping us trapped inside the domestic sphere, or is he merely trying to give character to what could be viewed as another trite mass produced form? Curator: Considering the Great Depression, one could view that eagle almost as a deflated symbol, still retaining a metallic gleam of authority but serving now in a diminished capacity, holding a door open in what seems to be the midst of chaos outside. It perhaps alludes to the fragility of symbols and ideals in times of hardship. Editor: Oof, dark. So it is meant to be gloomy then! I get a quiet melancholy about the piece, I’ll admit. Is that because, with this knowledge about the Depression, that I am projecting emotions where it might just have been whimsy. It reminds me, just a little, of those decorative weights on documents. The artist knew its utilitarian intent! Curator: Utility and symbolic value can definitely co-exist! Arthur Mathews work often explores similar ideas; it acknowledges cultural expectations but also imbues them with personal reflection, allowing viewers to reinterpret familiar imagery with fresh eyes. Editor: Fresh eyes indeed. I'll never look at a door stop the same way again, that’s for certain! Curator: That's the power of art, isn't it? Revealing the layers beneath the everyday.