Weather Vane c. 1937

Editor: So, here we have Edward L. Loper's "Weather Vane," created around 1937 using watercolor. It's a seemingly simple rendering, but I'm drawn to the almost technical quality in the presentation, especially that schematic in the corner. What stands out to you about it? Curator: What fascinates me is how Loper, by meticulously documenting this common object, elevates the mundane to art. Consider the weather vane itself—mass-produced, functional, likely made of copper or iron, materials readily available and affordable in that era. Now it's carefully rendered in watercolor, a medium often associated with "fine art" rather than technical illustration. Editor: Interesting! So you see it as challenging the hierarchy of materials and production? Curator: Precisely. Think about the labor involved in creating a weather vane. It involves metalworking, assembly-line processes potentially... whereas the watercolor requires a different kind of skilled labor, of observation and precise rendering. Loper is asking us to consider both. And what about the social context? What kind of building would feature such a weather vane? Editor: Probably a farmhouse, perhaps something that indicated a commitment to industry. Does this make you think about consumerism at all? Curator: Definitely. This depiction almost freezes the object. In doing so, Loper freezes a single moment of early to mid 20th century industry for reflection. Editor: That’s insightful. I initially saw it as a straightforward depiction, but I'm now considering all those different layers you’ve unpacked about the materials, production and even class! Curator: Art, at its best, reveals the intricate web of material culture surrounding us. We need only to slow down to analyze it.