Lake, St. Louis, American League, from the White Border series (T206) for the American Tobacco Company 1909 - 1911

This small printed card of Lake, from St. Louis, was made for the American Tobacco Company. The colours feel both faded and vibrant at the same time. I love how the process shows itself here. You can see all the little dots of colour, and how the colours never quite match the outlines. I’m drawn to the figure’s glove, rendered in a mossy green, it's sort of roughly indicated, like it's been coloured in with a blunt pencil. The way it fades out towards the top edge makes me think about the limitations of commercial printing at the time. It’s not trying to be high art, it’s a mass produced collectible, and yet it has such charm. This reminds me of Stuart Davis, how he takes these everyday objects and makes them iconic. It’s about embracing the limitations of the medium, and finding the beauty in the imperfect. It's about how art isn't about perfection, it's about a conversation, a moment captured in time.