Comb Box c. 1940

Editor: We're looking at "Comb Box," a watercolor and drawing by Chris Makrenos, made around 1940. It depicts, well, a comb box! I’m struck by the realism, how the light catches on the wood. What details stand out to you in this seemingly simple genre-painting? Curator: The drawing underscores the labor inherent in crafting everyday objects. Note the grain of the wood, meticulously rendered; this is not simply an illustration but an examination of the material itself and its manipulation. It encourages us to consider the socioeconomic context, to delve into the history of woodworking and the craftsman's role. How does this connect to its time of production, the 1940s? Editor: Well, perhaps this careful rendering of a handcrafted object offers a contrast to the mass-produced goods that were becoming more common then? Is it almost a celebration of traditional skills? Curator: Precisely. The comb box itself is a material signifier. Its existence and representation signal values around domesticity and perhaps self-sufficiency, which themselves are ideas shaped by class and gender roles within a given time. But let's consider the watercolor medium. It’s an "art" medium depicting a utilitarian object. Editor: So, it challenges the separation of art and craft? It elevates the everyday by using a fine art technique to portray it? Curator: Absolutely! The artist uses the artistic representation of an ordinary commodity, such as this handmade comb box, as a symbol of value of hand-made processes and its production. Editor: I never thought of a simple comb box holding so much history and questioning artistic boundaries. Now, when I look at it, I see a social statement as much as a still life. Curator: Indeed. Seeing the everyday through the lens of materiality can transform our understanding.