Mercury Barometer c. 1940

Curator: Before us we have Ray Price’s “Mercury Barometer,” rendered circa 1940 using watercolor and drawing techniques. Editor: Well, immediately, I’m struck by its quiet stillness. The monochromatic brown washes give it a sepia-toned nostalgia. Curator: Agreed. Price has masterfully deployed a limited palette to amplify the texture and form of this, shall we say, quaint instrument. Note how the light catches the subtle curves and carvings, animating the wood’s surface. Semiotically, it evokes an age of precision and domesticity. Editor: Precisely. Barometers such as these were not simply tools for scientific measurement but also indicators of social standing, especially in the mid-20th century. Consider the cultural anxieties surrounding weather and agriculture during the Depression era—this instrument, as represented in art, assumes an almost totemic power. Curator: Indeed. One might consider the artist's meticulous application of watercolor—controlled washes versus drier brushstrokes—to subtly delineate between the instrument's functional components. A study in structural oppositions that hints at a deeper meaning. Editor: True. However, its value resided not only within the bourgeoisie and their weather predictions; it permeated across societies. Imagine it hanging in a rural schoolhouse, its information influencing the local children. Curator: Interesting, yet ultimately the allure, in my view, rests in Price’s expert manipulation of value and tonality within an exceedingly restricted framework. Its simplicity serves as its power. Editor: Its simplicity allows the image to be universal; it offers us an opportunity to question societal anxieties, our pursuit of precision, and humanity’s endless dialogue with nature’s ebbs and flows. Curator: Precisely. Through an economy of means, it offers so much richness. Editor: Well said, that simplicity reveals so much more, even beyond forecasting weather!