Toy Bank: Donkey and House c. 1942

Jennie Kamar made this watercolor of a toy bank of a donkey and a house. I can just imagine the way she would have felt painting this little guy, this little donkey, this little house, looking so solid and still, and perhaps a little bit lonely. It's all cool greys and browns, making it look like a cloudy day. The house is solid, but the roof looks like it's melting. The donkey is stuck on the side, in service to the house. I wonder what the narrative is? Is this a commentary on labor and capital? Is the donkey being forced to work? I find myself focusing on that roof – the drips and blooms, the water bleeding into the paper, and the way the light hits the side of the donkey. The whole thing has the quality of a memory, a moment that’s fading. That's what the best painting does.