Wash Stand c. 1939

Curator: Immediately, the first thing that strikes me is the warmth. That rich, dark wood tones… almost inviting, you know? It’s rendered with such precision, but the color softens any potential austerity. Editor: You’ve noticed the same feeling I got! I find it oddly nostalgic, but if you consider Borelli’s choice of material --colored pencils -- to render the Wash Stand circa 1939, a drawing technique often dismissed as juvenile, it kind of speaks to accessible design, or rather, design education perhaps available even through modest means. Curator: Good point. The washstand itself carries cultural weight. For generations, such pieces were a fixture in bedrooms, representing intimate rituals of cleanliness. This one appears relatively simple in form, yet there’s a nod to classicism in the reeded legs, an echo of older, grander pieces. But using pencil...almost demystifies the furniture's implied status. Editor: Precisely. We could consider the function, too, right? A washstand before indoor plumbing becomes ubiquitous... it implies a certain socio-economic status, those able to afford such items. But, Borelli doesn't emphasize that opulence through lush paints. Instead, coloured pencil grounds it. Curator: Right! There's an honesty. It seems less about wealth display, more about function with maybe a slight nod toward refined tastes. And those small casters! Mobile hygiene; literally progress, if you want to look at it optimistically. Editor: Borelli does embrace art education standards that, by that point, are beginning to wane as a matter of official endorsement. I see a certain diligence invested here in the making. Curator: It's intriguing to see how familiar forms transform through media, how intimate routines evolve into larger visual languages about culture and the comforts we afford ourselves. I'm left with that sense of nostalgic warmth though. It is the color scheme above all, really holding my attention. Editor: I agree that is a feeling created by those specific shades, but, personally, what holds my attention are the materials! Pencils create marks from compressed material that you spread out... the very grounding of production! Curator: Nicely put. It's more than a furniture design; it’s a little artifact carrying material and social histories together. Editor: And easily stored for later use. Inexpensive and available almost everywhere... quite an inviting little object lesson!