Maple Mixing Bowl 1935 - 1942

Curator: Here we have John Cutting’s “Maple Mixing Bowl,” rendered in watercolor between 1935 and 1942. It's quite an intimate portrait, isn’t it? The mundane elevated to the subject of artistic attention. Editor: It gives me that satisfying feeling you get when you see something completely ordinary given a fresh, beautiful frame. It feels solid and warm. But almost lonely. Curator: I think you're right. There is an underlying stillness in the piece, it almost transcends being *just* a mixing bowl. Cutting created many watercolor drawings like this, showcasing domestic objects from around New England, everyday tools, handmade items, all part of a broad interest in preserving regional identity. Editor: The artist really captures the light. It makes the wood grain sing. I can practically feel the bowl’s smoothness, worn smooth over generations of use maybe? There is this dark shape right in the middle of the bowl; what does it tell you? To me it looks like a river flowing through it. Curator: That’s insightful! It emphasizes the object’s history of constant utility, a material echo of use etched into its core, just as you perceived. It reflects both modernist concerns and social history. He seems to be saying that our collective identity can be told through our interactions with the material world around us. Editor: It’s funny. Before knowing all of this background, I looked at it like this humble vessel carrying generations of secrets within the very fabric of the tree. But now, thinking about history, and the role the humble object plays within history. Maybe I was right all along, though. It IS just a bowl, haha! Curator: Not *just* a bowl! It is evidence of our enduring relationship to design and purpose. Hopefully now you can see the historical narrative inherent in a beautifully mundane object. Editor: You make a good point, maybe these everyday treasures are more complex and revealing than we give them credit for. Now if you excuse me, I feel inspired to bake!