Stern Piece

Elizabeth Moutal made this watercolor and graphite drawing, "Stern Piece," with the goal of documenting American design. Moutal was commissioned as part of the Historic American Merchant Marine Survey [HAMMS], a government program of the 1930s, during the Great Depression, which aimed to record and archive artifacts of maritime history. This image depicts a carved stern piece, likely from a ship, with a bearded man's head surrounded by foliage, tools, and flowers. In maritime culture, stern pieces often served as symbols of identity, power, and cultural values. HAMMS sought to preserve this cultural heritage, as institutions play a crucial role in shaping our understanding of the past. Moutal’s drawing freezes a moment in time, preserving not just the object itself, but also its cultural significance. Historians use archives, like HAMMS, to interpret art and artifacts, exploring the social conditions that shaped their production and reception. The meaning of art is contingent on its social and institutional context, something we must consider in its interpretation.