Food Safe c. 1939

George V. Vezolles made this drawing of a 'Food Safe' sometime between the late 19th and mid 20th century with graphite and watercolor. The symmetry and precision of the piece make me think of technical drawing, but then the warm hues of orange-red set against a cool teal make me think of a more playful sensibility. Was he interested in drawing and design? Maybe an engineer moonlighting as a painter, or vice versa? I imagine him carefully mixing the colors on his palette, a dance between precision and intuition, carefully rendering each line and plane. The drawing feels both meticulous and alive with potential, an object of practical beauty. It reminds me of the work of other artists who blur the lines between art and design, like the functional objects made by the Bauhaus artists. The conversation between artists spans generations, each building on the ideas of those who came before. We embrace uncertainty, finding new ways of seeing and experiencing the world.