Circus Wagon Monkey c. 1939

John Matulis made this Circus Wagon Monkey; you can imagine it in its original state, 50 inches high. I see a kind of faded glory in the blues and browns, the way they bleed into one another, suggesting age and the stories this figure could tell. I wonder what Matulis was thinking about when he made this piece. Was he thinking about the circus, about travel? About the transformation of raw materials into something whimsical and wonderful? I love the texture of the wood, the way you can almost feel the grain. The paint isn't trying to hide anything; it's part of the story. There is a strangeness here, too, something a little melancholic in the monkey's gaze. It reminds me that art is never just about what you see on the surface; it’s about the emotions and questions it stirs up inside us. And that is what keeps the conversation going across time.